Monthly Programs
From September through April the Club hosts monthly meetings
9:15 AM Socializing (coffee & refreshments served)
10:00 AM Membership Meeting
10:45 AM Program
September 28, 2026
Program: Name that Bird
Presenter: Stan Gray
Messiah Lutheran Church
1 W. Ridge Road
9:15 AM Socializing (Coffee & refreshments served)
10:00 AM Membership Meeting
10:45 AM Program
Stan Gray is a seasoned gardener and dedicated birder who has served as a volunteer and the Iris Curator at the Coastal Georgia Botanical Gardens (CGBG) for the last 19 years since relocating to Savannah. A 1972 graduate of the United States Military Academy with a career in the U.S. Army. Gray has successfully transitioned his professional discipline into environmental stewardship and avian research. He is a prominent leader within the Ogeechee Audubon Society, where he spearheads major bird survey projects, including 81 intensive surveys of Waste Management’s (WM) Superior Landfill site, culminating the prestigious Wildlife Habitat Council Certification in conservation commitment for WM. His extensive field work also includes coordinating Rusty Blackbird monitoring at Savannah Christian Prep School, managing the Hunter AAF sector for Savannah Christmas Bird Count. Gray’s contributions to B”ird Count” and serving as the coordinator/compiler for Richmond Hill Christmas Bird Count. In addition to his field research, he shares his expertise by having taught “Birding 101” classes for Georgia Southern University, Fort McAllister and the Georgia Ornithological Society, leads local bird walks as well.
October 26, 2026
Program: Native Plant and Landscape Design
Presenter: Christina Blanchard of Rewind Savannah
https://www.rewildsavannah.com
Messiah Lutheran Church
1 W. Ridge Road
9:15 AM Socializing (Coffee & refreshments served)
10:00 AM Membership Meeting
10:45 AM Program
Christina Blanchette brings a deep well of horticultural knowledge, professional experience, and creative vision to ReWild Savannah. A proud member and recipient of the Silver Medal Native Plant Habitat from the Georgia Native Plant Society and a speaker for garden clubs throughout the Savannah region, she is recognized for her expertise in native plants and ecological landscape design.
Christina Blanchette brings a deep well of horticultural knowledge, professional experience, and creative vision to ReWild Savannah. A proud member and recipient of the Silver Medal Native Plant Habitat from the Georgia Native Plant Society and a speaker for garden clubs throughout the Savannah region, she is recognized for her expertise in native plants and ecological landscape design.
November 16, 2026
Program: Artful Tables and Arrangements
Presenter: Sarah Hopkins
Messiah Lutheran Church
1 W. Ridge Road
9:15 AM Socializing (Coffee & refreshments served)
10:00 AM Membership Meeting
10:45 AM Program
Sarah Hopkins of Sarah Hopkin’s Designs brings over three decades of passion, artistry and deep-rooted tradition to the world of floral design and entertaining. A dedicated garden club member for 30 years, began in Texas with the Junior group of Garden Club of Dallas and the Founders Garden Club of Dallas. She continues today in her role as an affiliate of the Trustees Garden Club of Savannah, Georgia. For 15 years, channeled her creative talents as a professional floral designer and founder of One Pink Cookie, a boutique business specializing in custom floral design, handcrafted cookie gifts, and curated event styling. Sarah teaches floral design workshops to share her expertise. She has won numerous awards competing in many flower shows representing various clubs. Sarah has won many first place awards in Table Artistry blending fresh florals, fine China with decorative pieces. Sarah will share her passion and secrets for memorable holiday tablescapes. Sarah is a resident in the Landings with her husband and precious doodle. Their 7 children and grandbaby live all over the country.
December 14, 2026
Program: “Bethesda Orphanage in 1940 and Bethesda Academy today”
Presenter: John H. Reddan, MSEd
This meeting will take place at Bethesda Chapel
9:30 Membership meeting,
10:00 – 11:30 Program
John Reddan is an alumnus of the McCallie School in Chattanooga. He received his bachelor’s in history and political science from Furman University; master’s in education from the University of Pennsylvania. He served as Editor of the Boarding Schools Directory in Washington DC and was the founder of the National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs, CEP of the Eldercare Channel, served as the Head of Institutional Advancement and Business Development at Bethesda Academy since 2016.
Founded in 1740 by the evangelist George Whitefield, Bethesda was the first orphanage in British North America. The school remains one of the only two institutions in Savannah that survived from the time of James Oglethorpe and stands at the heart of the story of Georgia. John Reddan is recognized as an authority on the history of Bethesda during the eighteenth century and is working with a team of archaeologists to uncover the remains of the first building. The project is funded in part by the Georgia Society of Colonial Wars and Mills Bee Lane Foundation.
January 25, 2027
Program: Ogeechee Riverkeeper
History & its needed protection from pollution
Presenter: Ben Kirsch, Legal Counsel to Ogeechee Riverkeepers
Messiah Lutheran Church
1 W. Ridge Road
9:15 AM Socializing (Coffee & refreshments served)
10:00 AM Membership Meeting
10:45 AM Program
Ben Kirsh currently serves as the Ogeechee Riverkeepers legal director. Ben graduated from Case Western Reserve University and then served in the Peace Corps teaching English in a remote Mongolian village. Living so close to wilderness and seeing the environment’s central role in the community further deepened his appreciation for the natural world. He returned to the US and gained a law degree from Lewis & Clark Law School in Portland, Oregon with certificates in Environmental and Natural Resources Law and Energy. In 2019, Ben won the Leadership Award. Before joining the Ogeechee Riverkeepers team, Ben worked to protect and restore the lower Deschutes River in Central Oregon. His free time is spent camping, hiking, enjoying live music, a good book, great trivia and board games trying to keep up with his dog.
February 22, 2027
Program: Skidaway Island State Park Conservation
Learn about birding, wildlife and hiking with miles
of spectacular nature trails on this beautiful barrier island.
Presenter: Ellen Goza, Interpretive Ranger
Messiah Lutheran Church
1 W. Ridge Road
9:15 AM Socializing (Coffee & refreshments served)
10:00 AM Membership Meeting
10:45 AM Program
Ellen Goza is the interpretive Ranger at Skidaway Island State Park. She has spent the last three summers introducing young minds to the natural world during Junior Ranger Camps. In addition to planning and offering programs, she and her staff are responsible for trail maintenance, including trimming and pruning as well as invasive plant removal. She is also responsible for overseeing the care of the ambassador animals on display in the Interpretive Center; six snakes, two diamondback terrapins, and three box turtles. Ellen is a Suma Cum Laude graduate of Georgia Southern University, holding a bachelor’s in biology. She researched scale insect populations on magnolia trees, interned at the biodiversity greenhouse. She served in the U.S. Air Force as a weather forecaster and observer. Ellen served in the same roll at Wormsloe State Historic Site. She currently serves on the Program Advisory Committee for Georgia State Parks and Historic Sites Division.
March 22,2027
Program: Ossabaw Island Foundation
Presenter: Elizabeth Dubose, Executive Director
Messiah Lutheran Church
1 W. Ridge Road
9:15 AM Socializing (Coffee & refreshments served)
10:00 AM Membership Meeting
10:45 AM Program
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Elizabeth E. DuBose, Executive Director, has led the Ossabaw Island Foundation since 1998. A native of Atlanta, she holds a B.A. in American Studies from Hollins College (now Hollins University), and an M.A. in Historic Preservation from Savannah College of Art and Design. Ossabaw Island is a 26,000 – acre undeveloped barrier island in the Atlantic Ocean, owned now by the State of Georgia and located in Chatham County. Georgia’s first Heritage Preserve, accessible only by boat, is undeveloped and set aside by an Executive Order for natural, scientific and cultural study, research and education.
During her tenure at TOIF, Ms. DuBose has led all aspects of the organization: advocacy for Ossabaw’s Heritage Preserve designation and gatekeeper for appropriate island use; program development, fiscal management and fundraising; stewardship of buildings and equipment on the northern half of Ossabaw Island including the restoration or stabilization and maintenance of ten historic buildings on Ossabaw Island; historic research related to Ossabaw Island; and hosting of approximately 20 groups per year on the island (about half of all trips) for overnight stays or day trips, including providing expertise on tabby-making, historic preservation techniques, indigo dyeing and dye-making, hurricane impacts, and the history of the native population, the enslaved African-American and Freedmen of Ossabaw, 20th century intellectual/creative community, and colonial-era through present-day ownership and use of the island.
April 26,2027
Program: Bonaventure Historical Society
Presenter: Eliza Schmidt
Messiah Lutheran Church
1 W. Ridge Road
9:15 AM Socializing (Coffee & refreshments served)
10:00 AM Membership Meeting
10:45 AM Program
More information coming soon.