2024 Awards of Excellence
Outstanding Master Gardener Volunteers and their projects were recognized at the 39th Florida Master Gardener Volunteer Advanced Training Conference. We thank each of our volunteers and especially recognize those who go above and beyond in their volunteering capacity.
Outstanding Master Gardener Volunteer: Joan Schneider, Charlotte County
As an ambassador to UF/IFAS Extension Charlotte County, Joan Schneider is an exemplary volunteer whose dedicated passion she readily shares with the public. Volunteering 1,065 hours since becoming a MGV in 2021, Joan’s service includes helping clients at plant clinics and through email and social media. After Hurricane Ian, Joan coordinated the distribution of mosquito traps in hardest-hit western Charlotte County. A core member of the leadership team, she’s in her second term as treasurer. More remarkedly, Joan has been growing four citrus treatments as part of a USDA federal grant with UF/IFAS researchers investigating HLB mitigation strategies for home gardens. She turned this experience in citrus-education classes for the public, and was recognized with a 2024 National Achievement Award. She also found time to become a certified Florida Master Naturalist. Joan’s knowledge and achievement exemplify the integrity and dedication needed to be an outstanding Master Gardener Volunteer.
4-H Youth Award: Bay County 4-H Plant Club
Master Gardener Volunteers (MGVs) identified a need for Bay County youth to have additional opportunities to learn about horticulture and the environment. In response, they partnered with 4-H to establish a plant club. The main objectives were to enable youth ages 5- 18 to ignite a plant-science spark; determine the role plants play in their lives including healthy lifestyle benefits and choice; gain mastery of growing plants; gain a better understanding of the relationship between people, the environment, and plants; and to become stewards of the environment. A total of 15 youth participated. MGVs worked with the youth to identify their interests then selected and designed activities that met those interests. Youth reported they learned about growing, propagating, and maintaining plants. They demonstrated knowledge gain and several life skills including communication, teamwork, critical thinking, problem solving and leadership while participating in activities and teaching other youth.
Beautification Award: Alachua County Haile Community Butterfly Garden
Alachua County Master Gardener Volunteers were requested by Haile Plantation West (HPW) Homeowner Association (HOA) to advise on post-COVID beautification efforts of the Haile Community Butterfly Garden. Prior to Covid, the 28 year-old garden was an attractive and inviting community amenity for all residents. Over 125 people visit daily, by foot, bicycle, or in a golf cart. The garden had been previously maintained by an autonomous group of volunteers, which had included some MGVs. But as members of the group aged out or moved away, the garden became neglected, especially during Covid. Alachua MGVs proposed a Garden Beautification Project, which was approved by the HOA. Goals included mapping the garden, identifying plants and removing invasive species, and refine the garden’s design to demonstrate how to incorporate pollinator-friendly plants in home landscapes while following community guidelines. They also plan to recruit volunteers to provide routine maintenance, with the goal of building community engagement and pride in the garden. There are plans to host programs on Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ at the garden, and further develop UF/IFAS Extension and MGV rapport with residents and guests, as well as identify future plantings to enhance the garden’s biodiversity.
Communications Award: Polk County “Growing Edibles in Your Central Florida Yard”
This project involved six detailed one-hour webinars on successfully growing popular edibles in Central Florida landscapes. The series was under the auspices of the UF/IFAS Polk Extension MGV Speakers Bureau. PowerPoint® presentations were presented both live and by subsequent recordings, showcasing personal MGV experiences in growing Seminole pumpkins, pineapples, bananas, and tomatoes, as well as landscape management in the Central Florida environment. More than 300 viewers attended the six live presentations, and there have been 4,237 views of the YouTube recordings to date.
Demonstration Garden Award: Miami-Dade County, Ready, Set, Grow!
Susana Peñaranda and Yaredly Hernandez, driven by a deep passion for knowledge and community enrichment, graduated as Florida Master Gardener Volunteers in 2022. Their dedication led to the creation of the Ready, Set, Grow! (RSG) Initiative, a transformative program designed to foster a love for nature and learning among children at Moore Park, Eaton, and Lemon City Child Learning Centers in the City of Miami. RSG combines essential nutrition education with hands-on gardening experiences, immersing students in the wonders of nature while teaching valuable lessons in environmental stewardship. Through eco-conscious practices such as composting and native plantings, Susana and Yaredly have established vibrant, sustainable school gardens that promote healthier lifestyles and strengthen community bonds. By engaging children in scientific inquiry, art, and gardening adventures, RSG not only educates but also deepens connections to nature, embodying a commitment to lifelong learning and holistic community wellness.
Display and Exhibits Award: Martin County, Taste of the Tropics
Taste of the Tropics is a free community event presented by Martin County Master Gardener Volunteers. The event is designed for all ages to recognize, taste, preserve, and grow tropical fruits in Martin County. Tropical fruit is a passion for many Martin County MGVs, and they want their neighbors to know there are more varieties of fruit to be grown than simply citrus. Displays at the event presented the chance to sample 28 different tropical fruits, learn how to care for fruit trees, and detect diseases that can occur in tropical fruit. Display staff offered advice about fruits and herbs. A discussion panel educated, answered questions, and offered advice. Two local nurseries partnered to display and sell fruit trees and herbs. Over 460 guests attended the event and thanks to the many volunteers for making it a tremendous success.
Educational Materials Award: Polk County, “Soil & Nutrients” Training
“Soil & Nutrients” was developed by Polk County Master Gardener Volunteer Patricia Kurtz in 2023 for the Polk MGV training class as an in-person activity. A PowerPoint presentation is followed by two hands-on soil testing activities. Testing stations are set up for students to work in pairs. Each station includes tools and containers, as well as two IFAS/UF handouts on soil testing and pH in the landscape. The goal is to understand the origins, characteristics, and terms related to Florida’s soils, to understand how soil pH influences plant nutrition and how a soil lab report is used to develop a recommendation for a garden/landscape, and to experience the process of soil testing.
Extension for All Award: Nature Coast, Children’s Table Food Pantry
Nature Coast Master Gardeners Volunteers partnered with The Children’s Table, a non-profit food pantry, to teach people how to grow vegetables. Participants were new to gardening or were unfamiliar with North Florida growing conditions. While they embraced the initiative to foster food security and self-sufficiency, and shared the vision to provide fresh vegetables for both their own tables and the food pantry, many participants did not own basic gardening tools. The Nature Coast MGVs “Gardeners Growing Gardeners” (GGG) program addressed psychographic demographics and the perceived difficulty of raising vegetables in Florida. Using UF/IFAS science-based resources, MGVs answered questions on garden pests, where to put a garden, growing plants in Florida’s sandy soil. Nature Coast MGVs also hosted a series of gardening classes, where participants applied what they learned in a community garden. The spring garden yielded hundreds of pounds of potatoes, squash and beans for the food pantry, as well as okra and cow peas in the summer. At The Children’s Table’s request, Nature Coast MGVs repeated the program in September 2024.
Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ Award: Lee County, FFL for Barrier Islands
Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ (FFL) promotes sustainable, low-impact, science-based practices addressing Florida’s North, Central, and South zones. After Hurricane Ian, the communities of Sanibel Island, Captiva Island, and Fort Myers Beach faced a long road to recovery. Lee County MGVs Mariana Pardo, Stephen Wener (both of Sanibel-Captiva), and Rose Larkin (Fort Myers Beach) realized that the barrier islands have a special ecosystem of wildlife habitats and proximity to open waters not typically dealt with on the mainland. In educating devastated residents, they realized their communities had a unique set of needs in following the FFL principles. This gave birth to a training called “Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ for Barrier Islands.” First presented this summer in Sanibel, the class is scheduled to be delivered to additional communities in late 2024 and early 2025. It will also be used for the new MGV class training, teaching the FFL nine principles within the specific environmental parameters of a particular place.
Newsletter Award: Flagler County, Know, Sow, Grow
Since 2018, Flagler County Master Gardener Volunteers have curated and published Know, Sow, Grow — a quarterly newsletter with the aim to to educational, inspiring, and engaging. It educates Flagler County residents about Florida-Friendly Landscaping™ and plant selection, promotes MGV activities in the community, and inspires readers to take on new initiatives in their home gardens. In 2022, Flagler MGVs saw an opportunity for improvement and embarked on a journey to revitalize the newsletter. Their approach focused on three key areas: content, appeal, and distribution. They worked to ensure articles are relevant and interesting, that the newsletter is attractive, easy to read, and follows UF/IFAS identity standards, to provide additional educational resources and contact information. Finally, they improved reach by encouraging clients to sign up, promoting the newsletter at community activities, and advertising its availability.
Personal Communication Award: Polk County, Celia Beamish
A constant on the MGV help line, Celia Beamish has been a Polk County Master Gardener Volunteer since 2008 and has volunteered nearly 4,000 hours of her time. In nominating her for this award, Celia’s coordinator wrote, “Her customer service skills are top notch; Celia is knowledgeable and confident in her answers to clients’ questions.” Not only does she easily list off native and Florida-Friendly options for both ornamental plants and vegetables, Celia can offer detailed advice on planting and maintenance. She always follows up with additional resources, such as visiting Ask IFAS for publications or visiting the UF/IFAS Extension Polk County office for handouts.
Team Award: Monroe County, MGV’s Go Digital
During a difficult time without a UF/IFAS horticultural agent in the UF/IFAS Extension Monroe County office, the Master Gardener Volunteers came together to meet the challenge of addressing clients’ needs in a unique geography. Many Monroe County residents are new to the subtropical/tropical conditions found in the Florida Keys, and both they and the volunteers are spread throughout a county nearly 100 miles long. The Monroe MGVs devised a digital solution in the Virtual Help Desk, with the goal to promptly respond to client calls and emails regarding gardening and horticulture issues. While they have added members since, there were originally five volunteers, each with their own specialty. They are known as the Fabulous Five: team leader Kitty Somerville, Susie Reutling, Sharon Thomas, Barbara Martinkosky, and Karen Sunderland.
MGV Coordinator of the Year: Jeremy Rhoden, Marion County
In addition to MGV coordinator, Jeremy Rhoden is the urban and residential horticulture agent for UF/IFAS Extension Marion County. Jeremy’s background is in agricultural education, farm-to-school, hydroponics, vegetable gardening, and ornamental landscaping. He holds certifications with the Florida Nursery, Growers and Landscaping Association (FNGLA) and Green-Industries Best Management Practices (GI-BMP). Jeremy was recently named Extension Professional Enhancement Award Winner and is known for his hydroponics education, the Southeast Pollinator Count, and awards for Excellence in Leadership and Excellence in Extension Programing.
MGV Legacy Award Winners
- Escambia County, Edibles Education Garden
- Pasco County, Crew’s Lake Demonstration Garden
- Santa Rosa County, Greenhouse and QR Code Improvements
The Master Gardener Legacy Fund was created to provide financial support to Master Gardener Volunteer programs throughout Florida. Counties can apply annually to receive grants for new or continuing educational projects. Learn more about the Legacy Fund and previous winners.
More stories about our amazing Florida Master Gardener Volunteers