Murrieta Garden Club Still Enjoys Camaraderie 37 Years Later

It may have been their green thumbs that brought them together in the first place, but it is friendship and philanthropy that keeps members of one of Murrieta's longest-running clubs together.

Lorraine Kline, 78, current president of the Murrieta Garden Club, joined the club 15 years ago shortly after moving to The Colony in Murrieta. Her 36-year-old daughter died of cancer not long after the move, and it was gardening that helped Kline through her grief.

"People in mourning need to know that they need to get in touch with nature," Kline said, "Whether it is digging in the dirt or walking out in nature."

She said the socialization the club offered also helped her.

The Murrieta Garden Club was founded in 1974 and started with three members. The first president of the club, Arlean Garrison, is now 95 years old. Alice Vose and Rita Park were the other two original members, and only one of them--Vose--was well enough to attend the club's most recent meeting May 12.

They meet monthly at the , where their conversation drifts to what they can do next for the community. During the recent Fire Department Barbecue, the Garden Club sold plants. Each member contributed plants to the sale, which they have done annually for many years.

During this last meeting, each member brought plants from their gardens for a flower show. Then they voted anonymously for the best cut flowers, succulent, potted plant, minis and roses. They offered gardening tips to one another--one of the perks of belonging to a garden club, many of them said.

Fanchon Gatlin moved to Murrieta in 1976 and joined the club in 1977.

"Everything I brought from Orange froze to death so I had to learn what worked here," Gatlin said. "Plants here freeze in the winter and get cremated in the summer. The best thing to do is go around town and look at what you can grow and what works."

Robin Steely, 75, took over her mother, Irma McCracken's house in Historic Downtown Murrieta when her husband died.

"The home was my paternal grandmother's home--built about 75 years ago, small but well-built," Steely said.

Steely has 125 rose bushes and 15 trees to take care of. Joining the Garden Club helped her meet new people in town, she said.

Perhaps the youngest member is Lorrie Burkhardt, 49. She has lived in Murrieta 22 years, and joined the club at the urging of her neighbor, Sue Garcia. Another member, Patsy Phelps, lives in Vista but makes the drive to Murrieta for club occasions.

Using their talents in the garden, the club has made monetary donations to the Murrieta Senior Center, the Murrieta Public Library, Michelle's Place, the Temecula/Murrieta Community Pantry and the Santa Rosa Plateau Foundation.

The Garden Club also hosts an annual Pioneer Luncheon every November, another longtime tradition in the Murrieta Community.