The RiverView Health Auxiliary is beginning to hold a brand-new annual event, starting on Thursday, July 28, with a Garden Party Tour of the gardens of Auxiliary members Terri Noah, Lynn Willhite, Nan Widseth, Kitty Barstad. An event that is similar to their Tour of Homes event they hold during the holiday season, but this time, instead of houses, people will get to see large and beautiful gardens.
The event will begin on Thursday from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Minakwa Golf Course, with T.H.E. Bus providing transportation from the Golf Course to the houses of the Auxiliary members with the gardens. The participants will be given refreshments and snacks made by the committee members as they see each garden. “Tickets are $25 a piece, and that includes transportation, appetizers, and refreshments at each stop, and the most important thing; the beauty of nature and the hard work that goes into these gardens is just incredible,” RiverView Community Relations and Events Specialist Carrie Bergquist explained. “I wish I had a tenth of their talent, and it gives them an opportunity to show off their hard work, so it’s a win-win for everyone.” Each stop on the garden tour will be for about 25 minutes, allowing them to wander the garden and enjoy the refreshments. However, due to it being a new event, the Auxiliary is limiting the number of people they are taking to forty and have about fifteen tickets left. Tickets can be purchased at State Farm Andy Oman, Noah Insurance Service, and the RiverView Health Limited Addition Gift Shop. RiverView is accepting checks written to RiverView Auxiliary to pay for the tickets.
The tour will also be giving away door prizes at the end of the event that will be raffled out to all participants at the end of the tour. “One of them we have is on the RiverView Auxiliary Facebook page. It’s a copper wind spinner that’s valued at $200, that is very tall, taller than Nancy Capistran, who’s pictured with it. It’s more of a decorative thing to put in your garden. It’s beautiful. It lights up and spins, which is pretty awesome,” Bergquist explained. “We’ll have another prize in addition to that. Then we’ll have Dawn at D & D’s Thomforde Garden Center also donating a couple of items from her stores. I think we’ll have between four and five very nice store prizes, and all of those will be given away at the end of the tour, and everyone who buys a ticket is entered to win them.” Along with the door prizes and refreshments, the Auxiliary will be giving out water to the participants at all of the stops as well as a signature lemon slush drink, but Bergquist says that if anyone wants to bring any refreshments of their own, they are more than welcome to do so.
This will be the first Garden Tour event that the Auxiliary is throwing, and they hope to continue growing it every year by allowing more participants to join and having longer stops at each garden. Bergquist also says that the gardens are a fantastic sight to see, even to those who have no interest in gardening. “These particular gardens that we’ll be touring next Thursday, I’ve visited one of them, and I can tell you that it is something you would see out of a Home and Garden magazine. It is extravagant. There’s no weed in sight. These gardens are amazing, and amazing doesn’t even do it justice. It’s a hobby for some people, and for some, they take care of their gardens like it’s their baby, and they are just very extravagant.” She also says that the event is one that’s very unique from other events in Crookston, that helps get people outside and interact with friends, food, and nature.
The Garden Tour will be held on Thursday, July 28, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., beginning at the Minakwa Golf Course. Transportation to each garden stop on the tour will be provided by T.H.E. Bus, with door prizes given out at the end of the tour.
A picture of one of the door prizes that will be given out.
Updated on July 22, 12:20 p.m.
Tickets for the Garden Party Tour have been sold out.