Don’t you just love poinsettias? I know I do. Which was why I was delighted to have the chance to spend a whole morning surrounded by these festive plants earlier this week. Who said this job doesn’t have it’s perks?
The occasion, of course, was Hospice and Palliative Care of Chenango’s annual poinsettia sale. It is one of the largest fundraisers of the year for the non-profit organization, which provides compassionate care to the terminally ill. Orders were taken in November, and on Wednesday the plants arrived, ready to be delivered all across the county.
I was excited to help out with the effort again this year, not only because it is such a great cause and there are all those beautiful flowers, but also for the camaraderie among the volunteers. Those who help with this annual effort are some of the nicest, kindest people in our community and it is a pleasure to spend a few hours in their company.
Knowing I needed to be at the Norwich YMCA no later than 8:30 a.m. – which is smack dab in the middle of our morning deadline – I trundled into work even earlier than usual to make sure I had my story for the day completed. As soon as I filed it, I was out the door and headed across the street.
The plants, and most of the other volunteers, arrived before me. The festive blooms had already been separated by size - 6”, 8” and 10” - and sorted by color. There were your traditional reds, of course, as well as the equally delightful whites and pinks. Not to mention the marble variety, whose white and pink blooms I was so enamored by last year.
I was able to restrain myself from squealing with delight, but only just.
Despite the early hour, the space was already a bevy of activity. Poinsettias had already been pulled for some orders, and were ready to be loaded into a waiting van. Using index cards, volunteers were pulling even more plants to fill another order. Two women stood, staplers in hand, ready to attach those same cards to the plastic wrapping designed to protect the delicate botanicals from the frigid temperatures during their journey.
