It is our pleasure to announce that the Blisses’ outstanding volunteering efforts have led to yet another award for Greenwood! We are pleased to have nominated the Blisses and for them to be accepted as winners of the 2019 NJ State Governor’s Jefferson Award for public service! Congratulations to Katie and Mark!
Greenwood Gardens has benefited exponentially from the unbounded energy, enthusiasm and expertise of Katie and Mark Bliss over the past 10 years. The Blisses dedicate their winter months to volunteering at Greenwood during their off-season from the highly successful landscaping business they own in Maplewood. With only two full-time gardeners, Greenwood’s winter workforce literally doubles with the addition of the Blisses, enabling us to undertake large scale remediation projects, rid the garden of invasive plants, and take on other critical projects that we would not be able to complete without their expert assistance.
When asked why they are motivated to volunteer at Greenwood, the Blisses say, “We get a bit of a thrill every time we walk by areas where we hope we’ve made a difference.” These include projects such as planting the entrance circle and rejuvenating boxwood. Avid horticulturists, Katie and Mark visibly delight in helping revitalize Greenwood’s historic landscape. As much as we eagerly await their email in late December asking, “When can we start?”, we think that their own joy in volunteering here is even more compelling when they also tell us, “We can’t wait to get to Greenwood.”
With the generous and enduring help of Katie and Mark, we have been able to make significant progress on large-scale projects such as rejuvenating our crabapple slope, pruning our lilac collection and removing invasive vines that proliferate on our property, all with the aim of restoring and maintaining our historic site. Over the years, the value of the Blisses’ in-kind donation of their professional horticulture assistance has saved Greenwood more than $20,000 in contracted services.
As if all of this isn’t enough, Katie also supports our seed sowing activities for which she recently donated a much-needed grow light stand. Katie and Mark also serve as enthusiastic ambassadors for Greenwood, promoting our garden throughout the community since it opened in 2013. They introduced Greenwood to a client’s son who attended Newark Academy. This connection resulted in an ongoing partnership that mutually benefits Greenwood and Newark Academy through the school’s Senior Program that pairs students with local businesses. Thanks to the Blisses’ initiative, Greenwood sponsors four students a year who contributed a total of 232 volunteer hours in 2018 alone.
