Stay tuned for details on the June, 2010, piano concert of Chopin music, outdoors in the Polish Cultural Garden, marking the dedication of Chopin’s restored  bust and Chopin’s belated (March 1, 1810), 200th birthday celebration.  See the Polish Cultural Garden’s page on www.culturalgardens.org for details and a photo of the new bust.

Chopin Bust Dedication and Piano Concert–June, 2010

2009 marked the 70^th Anniversary of the original dedication of The Irish Cultural Garden. We commemorated the anniversary in fine style with a rededication ceremony on October 3^rd. The culmination of the efforts of the past two years was celebrated with the rededication and the inauguration and blessing of the new Recognition Court.

Consequently, I think I will present the year in review in reverse. The Irish Garden Club founded in 2007, is the primary fundraising organization that supports the Irish Cultural Garden. We are extremely grateful to the founders of the Irish Garden Club for their efforts in the restoration of and reinvestment in the garden.  As well, to the 60 years of support from the Ladies Ancient Order of the Hibernians and for 32 years of support from the Murphy Irish Arts Center.

December 12^th our email Christmas greeting was sent to a list of over 300 friends and volunteers of the Irish Garden.

Fall clean-up in the garden was aided by the extremely warm and dry October and November.

October 3^rd: ‘Twas a fine soft day in the garden. After a week of heavy thunderstorms we had an overcast day with a bit ‘o sun peeking out from the clouds.  With Irish music echoing down the boulevard and an abundance of fall color in the garden and in the canopy of the trees, some 400 people gathered for the event.  The celebration began with a morning reception at The Western Reserve Historical Society, sponsored by The Irish American Archives Society.  The Pipes and Drums of The Cleveland Police kicked off the ceremony, marching to the center circular lawn panel.  We were honored with Fr. Jim O’Donnell’s blessing and proclamations from the city and the state.  Presentations by Senator George Voinovich, Representative Dennis Kucinich and Cleveland City Council President Martin Sweeney concluded with a keynote address by Dr. William Golden of Galway University in Ireland. Master of ceremonies Edward F. Crawford and Sheila Murphy Crawford together cut the ribbon on the rededicated Irish Garden. Representatives from The Cleveland Cultural Garden Federation and the many Irish organizations in the city attended. Fortunately the garden, with its centralized location, historical significance and its universal appeal, created a singular celebration for all of Irish descent in Greater Cleveland.

In the month previous to the re-dedication ceremony, construction of the Recognition Court, designed by James McKnight and Associates, began with a new retaining wall and walkway in the north end of the garden. Great care was taken to match materials and workmanship in the construction of the Recognition Court. The Irish Garden was originally conceived as a ‘green space’ - park like and contemplative- without the features and ornamentations of the other cultural gardens. In the 1960 a singular bust was installed. We are now quite proud to have honored writers & poets of Irish decent with etched portraits on the seven new granite pillars of the Recognition Court. Plans are underway to continue to add writers, poets and musicians as the garden expands.

In preparation for the rededication, the Irish Garden participated in CWRU’s Day of Service in September. We were grateful to have 9 volunteers clean up the wooded slope south of the garden, weed the entry to the garden and before they left, plant 200 miniature daffodils bulbs. Volunteers from several area landscape companies also pitched in on this final clean-up before the festivities.

The ‘Irish Volunteers’ came monthly to the garden throughout the summer to weed and deadhead the perennial gardens. They also planted orange and white impatiens in the center of the garden in May that provided color all season. The perennials installed in the fall of 2008 were an ongoing show of color throughout the year.

For the ‘Irish Volunteers’ the spring clean-up was their first visit to the newly renovated Celtic Cross Gardens (fall of 2008). The design and installation met with overwhelming approval. Many of these long time volunteers in the garden recounted stories of an overgrown and unmanageable garden strewn with trash and enthusiastically re-committed to the maintenance of the garden.

March 2009 the garden began to wake from its slumber. Newly installed plants from the previous fall started to unfurl and reveal the rich palette of textures and the forty shades of green.

Char Crowley, Irish Cultural Garden

The Italian Cultural Garden Foundation is pleased to announce it has reached the halfway mark of the $750,000 Renaissance Restoration Project. Between 2007-2009 restoration of all major infrastructure has been completed with the restoration completed according to the specifications and guidelines for restoration and rehabilitation of a historical cultural landscape.

This was accomplished in major part to the community wide support and generosity of the Cleveland Italian community and recently from new support from donors out of state.

The restoration of the completed hardscape infrastructure include total restoration of the two large Renaissance fountains, installation of nineteen historical lampposts on both levels, (the Italian Cultural Garden is the first cultural garden to have comprehensive lighting),restoration of the two large staircases, new stone balustrade, sandstone pavement repair and the replacement  bust of Virgil, the Roman poet.

Projects currently in progress include a 14 ft. statue of  Dante Alighieri, originally planned in 1930 by the garden’s creator, Philip Garbo, which was never completed and implementation of Phase I of the landscape design generously donated by Ianiro Landscaping of Cleveland.

The Italian community will have an opportunity to donate benches and statues with a bronze plate memorializing a donor or their family name.

In 2008, the Italian Cultural Garden Foundation initiated the  “Viva La Cultura Italiana” cultural concert series  for the general public presenting opera concerts, plays, and instrumental music showcasing Italian arts and culture fulfilling the original intentions of gardens creator. In 2007, opera concerts were brought back after a sixty-eight year absence with over five hundred in attendance last year.

Extensive archives have been initiated filling the gap of the last sixty years. A book is being planned covering newly discovered original plans of projects never completed and about the life of its creator, Philip Garbo gained from the recollections of his 95 year old daughter, and the current historic restoration of the garden, the first since its inception in 1930.

Italian Cultural Garden Foundation -  216-916-7780.

Note:  details on the following will be forthcoming as this information is updated.  Chronological order of events follows:

Hungarian Cultural Garden Restoration Fundraiser & Wine Tasting Party, April 17th, Saturday

India Cultural Garden, Mother’s Day Peace Party, India Garden from 2 to 4 PM, Sunday, May 9

Italian Independence Day Celebration in the Italian Garden on Saturday, June 5

Hungarian Cultural Garden’s Annual Gulyas Cook Off, Sunday, June 20

Serbian Cultural Garden’s 2nd Annual Golf Outing, Saturday, July 10

Italian Cultural Garden’s “Opera in the Garden”, Sunday, July 25

India Cultural Garden observes Mahatma Gandhi’s Birthday in the Garden, 6 PM, Saturday, October 2

The Rusin Cultural Garden is often mistaken for Russian when it is not.  It is a separate ethnic group that has had a comparatively large population in the Cleveland area.  See the following links for more information on Carpatho Rusyns:  <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rusyns>  and <http://www.rusyn.org>  A copyrighted map of the area follows, thanks to Dr. Paul Robert Magocsi.

Carpatho Rusyn inhabited area