James Card:

Help Us Out ... Main City Saturdays
by James Card

"Main City Saturdays" has been around for a year
now and The garden has enjoyed hosting manygroups and organizations to volunteer at Main City
Park. In many articles in this newsletter I have said
that more is not better, but in this case that isexactly what is better... More, More and Morevolunteers are needed.
Each year the landscaping along the Springwater
Trail Spur becomes more established, additional
maintenance is needed. The first group for 2018
will be coming mid-January and will be able totackle some of the cleanup and pruning that needs
to be done. There is an abundance of pruning still
to be accomplished.
Do you have a group or organization that you canvolunteer on Saturdays? Everything is supervised,no special requirements for experience, and easy
access to all the work areas. Contact MichaelGonzales at michael.gonzales@greshamoregon.gov
or Jim at gresham.japanese.garden@gmail.com.

Editor2018 is not going to be any different in regards to timeand accomplishments. Some of the items in the works
started in January 2017, includes the Plaza project.
The weekly Saturday volunteer day continues and will
expand to Thursdays in the spring. Each "workshop"
will have a planned schedule and they will become
even more diverse. The storage yard will be revamped
as stored material is moved around to make additionalroom for the Garden project growth and supplies. Kaz
Kids will enjoy additional hands on projects that theTsuru Island will host either at Gresham High Schoolor at the Resource Center. the installment of a gifted
metal CRANE (TSURU) will take place at the Garden.
Some fundraising proposals for the future, such asweddings in the Garden, tea ceremonies to the public
as part of other ceremonies such as promotions,elections, anniversaries and more will be introduced.
Along those same lines memberships will be offered as
gifts for special occasions along with attendance atsome of the workshops or private classes such as"aesthetic pruning" or "design assistance".
These are some of the items expected to beaccomplished. An active calendar of events for theTsuru Island will be produced for event phases
extending over 90 days.

In The FutureOver the past 4 years there has been many ideas topromote Tsuru Island, utilize the Garden andattached areas for visibility and fundraising
opportunities. Many suggestions have come into
being over several months or even years after being
realized. With the time and resources of volunteers
it is sometimes a slow process

ISSUE 24

If you have an idea or suggestion,
gresham.japanese.gardem@gmail.com

DECEMBER 2017 EDITION

contact

Page 1JAPANESE GARDEN 2017 by Jim
Card

We have a tendency to think back over the year
around January first for many parts of our lives. Atthe Garden that happens more often during the year
as we update readers in the newsletter and makeannouncements to the volunteers. An overview of
the year is always a positive experience at thegarden.
There tends to be so many things
happening and so many people involved that theoverall picture can get lost. The following is a recapof those events that consumed our time and energy
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The year started with an opportunity to capture"ice on the plants" for the photo enthusiasts.
Pokémon continued to insist that the Garden
was a prime destination.
Trees were donated by J, Frank Schmidt and Son
Nursery not once but two times during the year.
Additional outdoor lighting for the bridge andbeyond was provided to the Garden by Kichler
Lighting.
4 new Giboshi topped the posts for the bridge
and installed before the 2017 Skosh Festival.
New lattice was milled out of the old bridgewood and installed at the Garden for theAzumaya.
An Irrigation line was installed to provide water
to the Resource Center landscape and supply
water to the greenhouse.
The redesign of the ocean area of the garden wascompleted with a donation from J Frank SchmidtNursery.
A special poem was written for the garden by
Kazumi Heshiki and was engraved on a stone forplacement by the Azumaya.
A "crane" created with metal art was donated bycitizens from the community and associatedwith the Historical museum.
A partnership with Rotary and Tsuru Island
volunteers was formed to refurbish the campus
at the history museum and campus.
Permanent Wi-Fi was installed in the Resource
Center and the Garden.
The "Aesthetic Pruning" group became amonthly program for those interested in the Art
with two visits to our Garden this year.
Classes were set up for Tia Chi each Tuesday andThursday near the Garden.

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Bonsai Classes were set up and scheduled tostart in January of 2018.
A projector and movie screen were purchasedwith donations so presentations can be made in
the Resource Center.
Thirteen Garden presentations and/or personal
tours were provided during the year for garden
clubs and supporters.
The Gresham Japanese Garden hosted theFriday morning Chamber of Commerce eventfor the Rotary Club of Gresham.
The "interactive garden" project by Bill
Peterson continued for the website allowing a
special game to be designed for the Kaz Kids.
The Gresham Japanese Garden applied to theNorth Aamerica Japanese Garden Asso.
presentation committee for the fall of 2018conference to be held in Portland.
Main City Saturdays began in January 2017 andhasestablisheditselfasavolunteer/community project for everyone.
The Kaz Kids continued with new support for
hosting the lunches that are part of thevolunteer days.
Tsuru Island joined the Chamber of Commerce
and the Japanese American Citizens League.
A new document was established between theCity of Gresham and Gresham Ebetsu Sister
City Asso. for the use and longevity for TsuruIsland.
Garden volunteers as part of the Gresham
Ebetsu Sister City Association delegation went
to Japan for the 40th anniversary of therelationship of the two cities.
The "Ebetsu Plaza" project was presented to thedelegation from Ebetsu by Mayor Bemis alongwith a tree planting for the 40th anniversarycelebrations.
A bronze plaque was provided by the StampConnection as a permanent fixture at theentrance of Ebetsu Plaza.
The "Garden Endowment" was established forthe continued fostering of the Garden for thenext 75 years.
The Ebetsu Plaza project was announced withCity approval. Preparations for a paver
engraving fund raiser began.

DECEMBER 2017 EDITION

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KAZ KIDS SCHEDULE
The Kaz Kids schedule will start on January 19th.
The work day will continue as before unless there
is inclement weather then they will meet in the"Resource Center". The construction of bee houses
will take place indoors with prepared lunch for thestudents. Wish to join us...Kaz Kids project begins
at 9am to 2pm. Several volunteers are needed toassist with the student construction of the housing.

Endowment Program
As a part of endowment program, the Ebetsu
Plaza project will include concrete pavers at theplaza entrance and the emergency lane which ispart of the area. A small committee consisting ofJohn Clark, Sue Hughes and Jim Card will be
putting together the sale of engraved concrete
pavers for that area.
John is planning the engraving program, thepromotion of the product and providing theengraving of the pre-sold pavers. John isawaiting delivery of the engraving equipmentthat he recently purchased and will begin
prototypes in January.
Sue will oversee the advertising and will provide
promotional materials, and social media tospread the word.

New Workshops Begin
The Japanese Garden will begin a series of workshops
open to the public and advertised on EventBrite aswell as Facebook and our website.
The first program will be about "Aesthetic Pruning" sponsored
by Tsuru Island and presented by Maryann Lewis a member ofthe Aesthetic Pruners Association located in Oakland CA. This
class will introduce aesthetic pruning principles and techniquesapplicable to any woody plant and many
garden styles. Registration will begin on
January 1st, 2018 atwww.maryannlewis.com. The date will beJanuary 27, 2018 at 1pm till 4:30 pm andthe cost will be $40.00.
The second program will be a series of bonsai
classes conducted by Mark Vossbrink.
Classes will be on the 3rd Thursday ofeach month beginning January 18th
through June 21st. Classes will include
all materials, will be 2 hours
beginning at 1pm. Cost of $45.00 eachclass.
The third program aimed at homeowners,
will be on irrigation and sprinkler systems. Understanding
Residential Irrigation” on Saturdays for 2 sessions February 17
and March 17. The cost is $45.00 for both sessions and will last
2 hours. The workshop will provide an understanding of design
and installation of irrigation systems, preventative issues, andhow to save energy and costs.

Jim will oversee the construction of the plaza
area, collect materials, and organize theinstallation of the engraved pavers.
The Garden will be partnering with other nonprofit organizations to promote the sale of theseengraved pieces of history.

CORPORATE SPONSORS
Bentwood Tree Farm
Cy Graphics
Kichler lighting
Patterson Nursery
Quality Woodworking Inc.
Reardon Nursery
Stamp-Connection
ISSUE 24

DECEMBER 2017 EDITION

Cardscapes
J Frank Schmidt Nursery
Moxon Hardwoods
PCI Arbor Equipment
Rainbird
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