April 5, 2021 at 12:29 p.m.
Enhancing Rhinelander's downtown: Annual DRI flower basket project still going after 14 years
Enhancing Rhinelander's downtown: Annual DRI flower basket project still going after 14 years
By Stephanie Kuski-
Since 2007, a group of steadfast volunteers have taken on the task of beautifying Rhinelander's downtown by hanging over 100 flower baskets along Brown, Davenport and Stevens streets.
The project started shortly after Downtown Rhinelander, Inc. (DRI) was established as a BID (Businesses Improvement District), which enabled DRI's design committee to fund the project. But when the BID dissolved in 2015, the task of fundraising for the annual project was taken on by local volunteers.
Now, 100 percent of the funds for the annual flower basket project come from community donations and volunteers work to plant the baskets in the spring and water them throughout the summer. The project collectively takes innumerable volunteer hours from early spring through the late summer, all in an effort to enhance Rhinelander's downtown.
"It's completely funded by donations from the community," noted Diane Dei Rossi, a volunteer with the Master Gardeners of the North and the DRI design committee. "The City helps put the baskets up and we have use of a trailer that the City owns. Beyond that, it's all volunteers who are involved in the project."
Every spring, Master Gardeners meet at the Forth Floral greenhouse to plant flowers that Ruth and Henning Hempel, owners of Forth Floral, have chosen for the year. The Hempels have been involved in the project since its inception, providing their floriculture expertise as well as their personal greenhouse to store and care for the flowers while they grow. Forth Floral employees have also been contracted by DRI to take on the gargantuan task of watering the plants.
Last year, the Rhinelander Community Foundation provided a $5,000 grant for the group to purchase new flower pots that include a water reservoir. With these new pots, those tasked with watering the flowers should only have to water every other day or every third day rather than watering every day throughout the summer.
On March 31, the Hempels were joined by Master Gardeners to plant the flower baskets, which will remain at the Forth Floral greenhouse until the plants are ready to be hung after Memorial Day.
"The Master Gardeners have been great," Ruth Hempel commented. "Every year they come with a group of people. It's a fun day for them and a good day for us to see them get planted."
Dei Rossi added that the Master Gardeners were not able to meet last year to prepare the baskets due to COVID-19, so she said she was excited to be involved once again. She has also participated in the project since it began and noted only 50 flower baskets were hung at the start. Now the group hangs close to 120 baskets from the Davenport Street bridge to the Courthouse, from the police station on Brown Street to Trig's and from the Carlson Funeral Home on Stevens Street to City Hall.
The baskets are fitted with different varieties of flowers each year, including colorful petunias and supertunias in addition to green foliage that make the flowers' vibrant colors pop. Although the baskets might look a little sparse when they're first hung, Dei Rossi noted that by the Fourth of July, they're typically in full bloom and the baskets stay hanging until early October.
Dei Rossi added that the volunteer group that puts out the flower baskets is now down to a "skeleton crew" of about a dozen people working to fundraise for the project as well as plant, hang and water the flowers throughout the summer.
"It's a lot of work," commented Pat LaPorte, DRI design committee chairperson and owner of Inside Story. "It's a lot of effort to have those flowers. Our community is so lucky to have people like Ruth and Henning at Forth Floral. They're so gracious and so giving of their time and energy to have this, and people don't realize it. It takes a lot of effort and if we didn't have those two people helping with this, we wouldn't have those flower baskets."
Marilyn Norden, who volunteers to fundraise for the annual project, noted that the group is always looking for individuals to donate any amount to the DRI flower basket project. She added that individuals can donate in memory of a loved one and each flower basket costs $100.
Those interested can make checks payable to Downtown Rhinelander, Inc. at PO Box 1638 Rhinelander, WI 54501. To contact DRI for more information about the project or to donate, visit their website at https://www.downtownrhinelander.com/contact/ for a contact form or follow DRI on Facebook.
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