APLDWA's Giving Campaign
By Sue Goetz, Past-President, 2024 APLDWA Board
The Washington chapter of APLD has a little-known outreach aspect of our membership- the scholarship fund program. This program aims to encourage the next generation of landscape designers by providing financial assistance to those who demonstrate passion and commitment to the profession.
Traditionally, the scholarship funding rotates annually between three local horticulture programs at Edmonds College, South Seattle College, and Lake Washington Institute of Technology. We collect the money at our annual Holiday Party every December and disburse it to the schools mentioned above.
The APLDWA board would like to send a big thank you to all our generous scholarship donors over the years. Support from our donations is part of what we do to help students in our industry. It also gives a greater outreach and purpose to encourage students and APLDWA members to connect and become valuable resources for each other.
Our latest funds, a whopping $3400, were collected in 2022/2023 and donated to the South Seattle Community College Foundation's "Adopt- a Student" program. Student Hannah Tobin was awarded quarters of paid tuition. Here is her thank you to our donors.
Dear Washington APLD Donors,
APLDWA scholarship winner Hannah Tobin, a Landscape Horticulture program student at South Seattle College
I am so grateful for your support as a recipient of the Adopt-A-Student scholarship! I appreciate your investment in my education, career goats, and the future of horticulture and landscape design.
I am currently a student in the Landscape Horticulture program at South Seattle College, which has allowed me to develop skills in the SSC greenhouse and arboretum. Taking courses with horticulture and landscape professionals has built my abilities and confidence to pursue my passion as a career. My goal is to work as a gardener and horticulturalist in an arboretum, parks department, or other public space.
In addition to my schooling, I work part-time as a tutor in South Seattle College's language and writing center and as a crew lead for a local landscaping company. It has been exciting to put what I've learned into action installing and maintaining residential landscapes.
Thank you for the opportunities this scholarship will provide me! This financial assistance will lessen the financial strain of taking on a career change, allowing me to focus more on schooling and the flexibility to start in a new field.
Many thanks,
Hannah Tobin
APLDWA scholarship winner Hannah Tobin, a Landscape Horticulture program student at South Seattle College
Congratulations, Hannah, and we look forward to meeting you!
We would also like to extend a big thank you to Sarah Van Sanden of SVS Landscape Design for working diligently with South Seattle College to make this donation happen! During the 2022-2023 donation experience, we learned that the schools have made changes to their Scholarship policies, and they may not always be able to award a specific scholarship to a Design/Horticulture student.
We are rebranding our Scholarship program to 'The Giving Campaign' to bridge this gap. The funds collected will have a broader reach. It can fund a student's education or support the Design/Horticulture department, whereby they can use the funds to purchase equipment/materials, fund a field trip, pay a speaker to teach a class, etc.
The APLDWA Treasurer and the Giving Campaign Liaison will work with the school and the department to find innovative ways to disburse our donations.
Please consider donating to our 'Giving Campaign.' We will collect money during registration for the APLDWA Holiday Party on December 8th. Watch your email for more information on the party and ways to donate if you cannot attend the party.
For more information, reach out to us at contactus@apldwa.org