By Bill Ward
Published in The Boerne Star on October 15, 2002
When Nina Nye and I were members of the Fredericksburg Chapter of the Native Plant Society of Texas (NPSOT), I asked if she thought there would be any interest in a NPSOT chapter in Boerne. She was doubtful, because of the earlier failure of an herb society.
Later I mentioned the subject to Betty Dunn, who was in the San Antonio Chapter. She was uncertain. We both wondered if there would be enough support in the Boerne area, because the long-established San Antonio Chapter is not far away.
Soon after that, County Agents Rebecca Rogers and Lee Knox were approached by Judi Martin and Janet Doyle about establishing a “garden club” that dealt with native plants. They approached Nina Nye to see if she could help them start a chapter of NPSOT. Nina said, “No, but Bill Ward can.”
Rebecca Rogers never heard of that guy, but Knox knew me; so, we arranged a meeting to discuss it.
To tell the truth, I was uncertain they really wanted a NPSOT Chapter, because if there is one thing NPSOT is not, is a garden club. I asked my fellow Cibolo Nature Center volunteers Suzanne Young and Rebecca Yoder to come as moral support for the first meeting with those ladies. I explained to the group that the purpose of NPSOT is to promote conservation, research, and utilization of the native plants of Texas. through education, outreach, and example.
I got back an enthusiastic response.
It didn’t take long to see that this was a creative group, and they meant business. But how many other potential members were out there? We’d have to see.
Actually, it took no time at all to get the required ten people to join NPSOT so that we could request a chapter for Boerne.
From the start, those initial members worked as a supportive group. Everyone pitched in. Two years ago this month, we advertised a wine-and-cheese social to recruit more members. and we invited a few of the State NPSOT officers to attend. We were all astonished to see the crowd that turned out.
The generous offer of the Cibolo Nature Center to let us meet at that facility was especially beneficial to us. It had the perfect ambiance for meetings of a NPSOT chapter.
The very next month we had a good attendance for our first meeting as the official Boerne Chapter. Janis Merrit was the first speaker, and there would be many top-notch speakers in following months.
At the end of the second year, we had doubled the first year’s membership.
The chapter continues to grow.
What makes the Boerne Chapter such a quick-success story? For one thing, this is a community with a large group of curious people who are enthusiastic about conservation of the Hill Country environment. A lot of people here not only want to learn about the native habitats; they also realize that promoting native plants is one way of conserving our ground water. As Susan Sander says, what we plant today will impact our water supply tens years from now.
Although most members of our chapter are beginners in learning about native plants, we have among our members and community friends a number of people with considerable knowledge of native plants. The generous help and guidance of these experts has been instrumental in helping us plan a productive chapter.
Another big factor in our success is that we have an abundance of creative members who are willing to pull together to put ideas into action.
As a good example, consider Operation NICE! (Natives Instead of the Common Exotics!). Other NPSOT chapters around the state are hoping to copy that program. In addition to all this, we are lucky enough to live in a community where nursery people are sympathetic to our programs. At least five nurseries have enthusiastically supported Operation NICE!.
Think about it … we ask them to support Natives Instead of the Common Exotics when they are making their living from selling the common exotics. But those kind people appreciate all the reasons we are promoting natives, and they support us even if it means little to their income. They and we hope that one day, through our efforts to educate the public, native plants will be a major source of income for the local nurseries.
Both Boerne newspapers have been supportive in helping us reach out to residents of this part of the Hill Country. This critical support has brought us many new members.
It turned out, after all, that the Boerne area indeed would support a NPSOT Chapter. And to say “support” is an understatement.
This chapter has accomplished a great deal in just two years. We have several programs that can make a difference to this community. We are one of the most active and productive chapters in the state. As one of our members said, “I wouldn’t miss a meeting. This is the most positive experience in an organization I’ve ever had.”
The Boerne Chapter meets the first Tuesday of the month, 6:30 p.m., at the Cibolo Nature Center. Visitors are welcome.
