August 2024

NO MISSOULA IRIS SOCIETY MEETINGS IN AUGUST OR SEPTEMBER

ENJOY YOUR SUMMER!

SEE YOU IN OCTOBER!

Hello everyone! The Missoula Iris Society hopes you are all well after the terrible wind storm that hit our Missoula area!

JULY was a very busy month for the Missoula Iris Society.

        We began with an Ice Cream Social at the home and garden of Judy Blunt. Judy made delicious homemade ice cream, toppings, and  angel food cake. We all had a wonderful time. A short meeting was held to explain the activities of the upcoming annual Missoula Iris Society Sale.

       Then came the Annual Missoula Iris Society Sale.

       Activities for the sale began on July18, at the garden of member Elloie Jeter, where we cleaned and clipped the iris she so generously donated to the sale. They were brought to Missoula and stored at the collection site, the Gustafson residence, where they would be sorted and labeled.

           Sunday, July 21, Judy Blunt dug iris from the fort garden and members washed, trimmed, and bagged them in preparation for the sale. Judy also brought her donations of iris to the fort. They were taken to the collection site to be labeled for the sale.

        Monday, July 22, members labeled the Jeter and fort iris at the collection site. The iris were taken downstairs at the Gustafson collection site to keep them from the extreme heat.

        Tuesday, July 23, members gathered at the garden of Fred Frey to dig, wash, bag, and trim iris that he so generously donated for the sale. Again, they were transported to the collection site, the Gustafson residence. These were stored in the Gustafson garage with fans and an old air conditioner running to try to keep them cool.

         Wednesday morning and the evening, July 24,  members participated in completing the labeling of the iris donations for the sale. Rachel Ballard and Gary Clark brought their donation of iris all cleaned and ready for labels.

        At the different work parties iris pictures were also placed in each tray of iris. Judy Blunt made a master list of all 163 varieties of iris to be sold at the sale. Steve Hesla printed pictures of iris we did not have in the card files.

  THEN WEDNESDAY EVENING AFTER THE WORK PARTY THE STORM CAME!!

        Thursday, July 25, Judy and Swede checked out the iris garden to see what damage had occurred and spent 5 hours cleaning up debris. Fortunately, there was only debris and one rose arbor knocked over.  Judy and Swede thought we could possibly have the sale within the garden, with caution tape keeping the public from going elsewhere on the grounds. Meanwhile we continued with the alphabetizing of the iris at the collection site to prepare for the sale.

        About 2:00 PM, I received a call from a board member of the Historical Fort Missoula. We could not have a sale on the fort grounds due to the danger of possible injury due to all the downed trees and broken branches in the area.

NOW WHAT:  Swede, Gary Clark, Steve Hesla, and myself began to brainstorm at the collection site on where we could possibly have the sale. Our first thoughts were the farmer's markets. Also we contacted Parks and Recreation about the use of the pavilion by the garden. Of course, no one was answering the phone or messages due to the storm, so we emailed each market. While waiting for a response, we began picking out the iris that had the most rhizomes for sale at the market. In no way could we take 163 varieties of iris to the farmer's markets.

         Friday, July 26, about  10:00 AM, the Clark Fork Market had offered 4 spots and the Missoula Market 2 spots. We accepted.

       Steve Hesla made a decision about 11:00 AM to go personally to the Parks and Rec to try to secure the pavilion at the fort across from the iris garden. It seemed to be the best alternative for us. After talking with 7 individuals and Gary Clark urging him on, he found Sue Dunn who was in charge of scheduling for the pavilions. She offered us the Bitterroot Pavilion on Fort Missoula Road just past the Larchmont Golf Course. By 2:30 PM we had our insurance required by the city and county and the Bitterroot Pavilion rented. The next step was to cancel the markets and contact members to let them know where the new site would be.           

         All advertising had been for the fort garden. The Historical Fort Missoula promptly advertised it on their website and Bronwen Harris, member, put it on the Missoula Iris Society Facebook page and Instagram, and Deb Belden put it in You Know You'd Lived in Missoula, MT on Facebook.

        At 5:00 PM members loaded the trucks with the iris, Deb Belden began making new signage, and we had a delicious Tri Tip Steak Vegetable Soup with homemade buttermilk biscuits made by Judy Blunt  Our members brought great salads and desserts.

        Saturday, July 27, at 7:00 AM, sale day, we arrived at the Bitterroot Pavilion to set up the sale. Signage was adapted for the new area and placed on South Avenue, the fort garden, and within in the fort so they could find us. It was the best of all worlds to have it at the pavilion because people would automatically come to the fort area to see if we were having a sale. Fred Frey and Bronwen Harris had so loyally advertised our sale weeks ahead of time and now all of sudden there is a new venue.

          9:00 AM, we were ready and we had customers lined up! We were hopeful. As it turned out, there was a steady stream of customers during the duration of the sale. It appeared we had a successful sale!

A big thank you goes to Fred Frey, Elloie Jeter, Rachel Ballard, Judy Blunt, Gary Clark, and Swede Gustafson for their iris donations which added up to 163 varieties available for sale.

Thank you to 26 Missoula Iris Society members who gave their precious time to work on the preparations for the sale and volunteering the day of the sale.

NOW A HIP HIP HOORAY FOR AN EXCELLENT SALE!!!!

GROSS PROFIT:  $5442.85

   CREDIT CARD SALES: $2022.85

   CASH SALES:  $2420.00

   GRAB BAGS:  $152.00 sold by Gary Clark and Deb Belden

SALE NET PROFIT: $5,594.85!

         EXPENSES: $110.00 Missoula Parks and Recreation, Bitterroot Pavilion rental

                                 $21.95 Caution tape for use at the fort

                                 $41.13 to Judy Blunt for soup and biscuit ingredients

                               Total: $173.08

TOTAL PROFIT:  $5269.77

We also have 7 new members which we welcome to the Missoula Iris Society.

Thank you Missoula Iris Society members for all your hard work which resulted in a fantastic sale. You battled extreme heat and a terrible wind storm to help make our sale a success.