Teacher brings flower power to nursing homes and care facilities through non-profit
Haddonfield resident Leona Davis brings joy through non-profit “Forget Me Knot Flowers.”
Haddonfield resident Leona Davis has spent 21 years in the Washington Township Public Schools putting a song into the hearts of her students. Now, through her non-profit floral repurposing service “Forget Me Knot Flowers,” the Bells Elementary School music teacher has found a way to bring a different kind of joy to a different generation.
While planning her daughter’s wedding last year, Davis was disturbed to think that the beautiful and pricey flowers that would be adorning the celebration would likely be trashed shortly thereafter.
“When we discovered that the wedding flowers usually get thrown away, we decided that after the reception, we would repurpose and restyle them into smaller bouquets and share them with residents at a local nursing home,” Davis said. “When we saw the residents’ faces upon receiving the flowers and hearing the bride and groom’s love story, our hearts erupted with love and gratitude. It was clear that we couldn’t stop with this wedding. The seed for ‘Forget Me Knot Flowers’ was planted.”
Davis and her team now work with couples, event planners, florists and grocers to share the love-filled power of recycled flowers to ensure those in nursing homes, care facilities, shelters and local hospitals are not forgotten.
“These flowers are still beautiful and still have joy-providing power,” she said. “This is our way of saying, ‘We are interested in you. We care about you. You are loved’.”
Now 1,000 bouquets in, blooms of joy have been distributed to a number of organizations in the tri-state area, including: Ronald McDonald House, Voorhees Pediatric Center, Wiley Mission, Inspira Traditional Care Unit, Voorhees Care and Rehabilitation Center, Abigail House, Spring Hills, Women Against Abuse and the Camden County Women’s Center.
“We believe in making connections through simple gestures like notes, beautiful flowers and storytelling,” Davis said. “All can conjure up happy memories, make someone feel loved and comforted, especially those who are dealing with loneliness, sickness, terminal illness or injury.”
To learn more about Forget Me Knot Flowers, please visit www.forgetmeknotflowers.org, and follow them on Facebook.
