Kay Peacock, president of the Seedling Garden Club of Swainsboro, was named Outstanding Garden Club Member of the Year during the Oleander District’s annual meeting on Wednesday, October 21, at the Nordson Center in downtown Swainsboro. The honor recognizes Peacock’s many years of leadership, community service and dedication to the work of garden clubs at the local, district and state levels.
A member of the Garden Club of Georgia State Board since 1997, Peacock has served as secretary and chaired numerous committees. She served as Oleander District director from 1999 to 2001 and on the Deep South Region Garden Club board from 2011 to 2013. Her service has included work with conventions, awards programs, roadside beautification and the House and Garden Pilgrimage in Midway. She also helped recognize Department of Natural Resources employees for their work at Georgia’s state parks and public lands, securing judges and traveling to parks for evaluations. While attending a roadside beautification luncheon at the Jimmy Carter Center in Atlanta, Peacock had the opportunity to meet and shake hands with former first lady, Lady Bird Johnson, whose efforts to promote wildflowers along highways reflected Peacock’s own interest in beautification. Peacock also helped plan and promote the Garden Club of Georgia’s first “Wild, Wonderful Experience Camp,” titled “From Mountains to the Sea.” The weeklong experience took children from the North Georgia mountains to the Georgia coast. She served as chairman for a Lowcountry boil welcoming the group to the Oleander District in Savannah.
Her commitment to service has extended beyond gardening. Through the “Fig Leaf Project”, Peacock helped collect and deliver socks, underwear and toiletry items to hospitals, traveling many miles to assist with deliveries. She has also supported the “Pull a Tab” project and appeared in a “Georgia Keep It Green and Clean” video promoting litter prevention. The videos were distributed to Georgia welcome centers and law enforcement agencies.
Closer to home, Peacock has combined her interests in gardening, history and community involvement. As a former president of Emanuel Arts Council, she started a children’s program introducing young people to gardening. She also served for several years on the Emanuel County Historic Society board, coordinating Seedling Garden Club volunteers in decorating 14 furnished historic buildings for a Christmas celebration marking Emanuel County’s 200th anniversary. For the 79th annual Pine Tree Festival, Peacock chaired her club’s effort to decorate the farm wagon on the Swainsboro square. She later led the decorating effort for a Fourth of July celebration honoring the nation’s 250th anniversary. Peacock also worked with local officials to have a Blue Star Memorial Highway Marker moved to its correct location and chaired a rededication ceremony following the move in Swainsboro. At Emanuel County Nursing Home, she helped promote the club’s red, white and blue plantings and vegetable garden, giving residents opportunities to participate in gardening and enjoy the harvest. She also chairs the club’s Arbor Day tree plantings, which honor local residents and remember deceased club members.
An accomplished floral designer, Peacock has had arrangements featured in the Garden Club of Georgia’s “Expressions” calendar, earning a district award for one of her designs. She has displayed arrangements at conventions, entered state flower shows and decorated for civic and church gatherings. Her church service includes work on the bereavement committee, leadership as president of Women on Mission and service as treasurer of 55 and Alive, a group that meets monthly for programs and fellowship. Peacock also keeps the community informed about the Seedling Garden Club’s activities by preparing articles for the local newspaper after club meetings. Her contributions have previously earned her the Exchange Club’s Book of Golden Deeds Award. A life member of National Garden Clubs, Deep South Region Garden Clubs and the Garden Club of Georgia, Peacock continues to share her time and talents through projects that beautify the community and bring people together.
Congratulations to Mrs. Kay Peacock for this outstanding achievement of being named the District Garden Club Member of the Year.
