Springing into yellow meadows with new Daffodil event

Mar. 2—ASHLAND — Plans are growing for the city's first Ashland Spring-tacular Daffodil event, an event in March.

In fact, a new nonprofit has sprung up as a result.

Norma Meek, president of Ashland Spring-tacular Daffodil event, said the group's goal is to plant 20,000 daffodils each year throughout the city and to celebrate the flower's beauty in March.

That celebration will include several events:

* March 17, 3 p.m. — A daffodil walk through Central Park. Sponsored by the Ashland Area YMCA; long-sleeved T-shirts may be purchased with individuals' names on the back for $25, but the walk is free; hot chocolate will be served and a visit from the Easter Bunny and Mrs. Easter Bunny are planned. Meek said more than $20,000 in prizes will be awarded.

* March 23, 3 p.m. — Children/family Daffodil Tea, Highlands Museum and Discovery Center; Cost is $10.

"There will be children's art exhibit and for sale," Meek said. "I'm hoping grandmothers will bring their grandchildren, that whole families will come and kids can purchase a hat."

She said Haberdashery Designer Hat Salon is open in the museum, with a variety of items for sale. The shop will continue to be open throughout the week-long event.

"There will be dressing areas with mirrors, fascinators, and you can get your Derby hat there," Meek said. "There's also going to be items for kids, dog collars, bow ties for me."

* March 24, 3 p.m. — Royal Daffodil High Tea, Highlands Museum and Discovery Center. The event is for committee members, sponsors and invited guests: Champagne, wine and a variety of teas will be served, along with dainty sandwiches and Nancy Reagan's cheesecake, thanks for the group's vice president, Clarke Wiley, who served on Air Force One during the Reagan administration. There also will be china and silverware from Air Force One, Meek said. Sponsors and committee members

"The museum is going through a transformation. It's going to be out of this world," Meek said, adding a contractor has been hired and 500 yards of material, along with 10 crystal chandeliers, will be used to set the scene.

"We're going to have music and local male celebrities around town will serve us," she said. "We're going to be schooled on how to pour tea."

An exhibit of local artists' interpretations of flowers will be up and pieces will be for sale during high tea.

During many of the events, a fairy princess will make an appearance. Her name is Daffni Dil.

"A special costume is being made for her in Cincinnati," Meek said, noting she will attend the teas.

She said during the week, schedules of all the "meadows of yellow" in town will be available so those wanted to view the daffodils can drive to the sites whenever they wish. At times, Easter eggs and treats will be available from the Easter Bunny.

The big uncertainty is whether the daffodils will be in bloom in March.

"They were last year, but you never know," Meek said. "We're hoping and that's all we can do." She said depending on the state of bloom, the schedule might have to be adjusted in terms of viewing the blooms, but the scheduled events will continue.

What is for sure is the goal of the event, which is to benefit the city.

"It will be a destination place where people can come in the spring, tour our meadows, shop in our stores, eat our food and attend the tea and the walk," Meek said.

The idea began with Wiley, who filled his back yard on Forest Avenue with daffodil bulbs last year for a royal high tea; he thought expanding that idea was a good one. He got Meek involved.

"I didn't want it to be like a festival, because when you talk about a festival, it denotes food trucks and vendors, and I wanted to be involved with things that promoted beauty, peace, love, serenity and tranquility," she said. "If we can incorporate that into the spectacular event, then I said I'm on board."

Others in the group are Susan Hunt, treasurer; Teresa Church, secretary; and Karen Hogsten, Tim Quade, Jenny Ferguson Conley and Laura Neal.

Also important in Ashland's daffodil universe is Dr. M.J. Wixsom, who was responsible for the daffodils in Central Park.

"She got it organized, and she's going to receive the first Daffodil Spectacular Award," Meek said.

A featured meadow is on Bradley Drive, which Meek said is a neighborhood that has been active in beautifying the community. It was chosen for the first mass bulb planting by the group; each year of the event, a new area will be chosen.

Bulbs were distributed at Ashland Milling; Meek and Hunt wrote grants to fund the project, and private sources from all over the country helped fund the project, too, as well as Marathon and Ashland Community and Technical College. In addition to Bradley Drive, yellow meadows will appear at the Ashland Tennis Center, Broadway Square, around the signs entering Ashland, an Ashland Town Center mall sign, in the middle of Catlettsburg, Dutch Berry Park (at Blackburn and 29th Street) and along Bradley Drive.

"In 10 years, we hope to have 70 meadows of yellow," Meek said. "I think it's going to be a good thing for the city."