This year citizens have an opportunity to help make our village even more beautiful.
The Blowing Rock Appearance Advisory Commission (BRAAC) is offering the opportunity to “purchase” a planted basket to hang on one of the lamposts along Blowing Rock’s Main Street.
“The cost is $50 and you can honor a loved one, friend, foe or in memory of someone special,” said BRAAC volunteer and board member Virginia Jones. “We’re also asking The Blowing Rocket to run an article recognizing those who donate to this special project, and list those who are being honored.
“The basket will arrive in time for our Spring Planting Day on Saturday, May 26th,” she said. “There are only 81 baskets available for purchase and those planning to participate should do so soon.”
The May 26th Spring Planting Day has become a tradition in Blowing Rock, a time when citizens turn out to help plant bulbs and flowers all around the downtown area. The day turns out to be just as much a social as a village volunteer effort in support of the Blowing Rock Appearance Advisory Commission.
“This is a great way for new residents to meet their neighbors, old friends to work together, and a way civic organizations can join together in a project that makes their community more beautiful,” said Jones. “It is a whole morning of fun for all who volunteer, even those who don’t know which side of the plant to put in the ground.”
The opportunity to volunteer is a grand way to show BRAAC members appreciation for their annual efforts in beautifying the village. From one end of the town to the other, beds of flowers, pots, banks, and buffer areas along sidewalks and roadways are blooming with the flowers put in the ground during the Spring Planting.
Funding for the BRAAC project comes from the Town of Blowing Rock and hundreds of donors who answer BRAAC’s letter of appeal. Most of the gifts come from those who acknowledge, in a meaningful way, the success of the program that has made Blowing Rock unique in its downtown appearance.
BRAAC volunteer also welcome ideas and suggestions as to areas to be planted, as well as suggestions as to flowers and plants that may be used to beautify the area.
Another communitywide project of BRAAC is the annual Spring Clean Up, this year set for Saturday, May 3, with volunteers asked to show up at 9:30 a.m. in Memorial Park to “sweep” the town’s major thoroughfares in preparation of summer. A free grilled lunch will await those who participate in the annual BRAAC Spring Clean-Up Day.