GFWC McAlester Fortnightly members spread Color Oklahoma native wildflower seeds at Chadick Park in conjunction with Color Oklahoma and Oklahoma Native Plant Society. GFWC-OK McAlester Fortnightly club members shown above with Oklahoma Native Plant Society’s Lynn Michaels (holding the Pollinator Planting sign to the right.)
| by Angie Sellmeyer, Club Historian and past club President
(McAlester, Oklahoma January 2026) GFWC-OK McAlester Fortnightly Club partnered with Color Oklahoma with Wildflowers, the Oklahoma Native Plant Society and the City of McAlester to sow two pounds of native wildflower seeds in the large plant bed by the Third Street entrance to Chadick Park. The city park crew removed depleted growth in the bed while the Fortnightly members groomed the plant bed prior to sowing the seeds. The planting was part of the Celebrate America 250 with Wildflowers Program where native-to-Oklahoma wildflower seeds were planted in all 77 Oklahoma Counties. Seeds were specially selected to provide colorful wildflowers and native grasses from mid-May through fall. Monica Bartling, GFWC-OK President-Elect and Color Oklahoma Chairman stated, “This project is in conjunction with “Celebrate America 250” the semiquincentennial signing of the Declaration of Independence. By spreading wildflower seeds within their county, GFWC Oklahoma clubwoman show their pride in both Oklahoma and America, add beauty to public spaces and provide essential food for pollinators in their communities.” Twelve Statewide General Federation of Women’s Clubs under the umbrella of the GFWC Environment Community Service Programs participated in this project. The 12 clubs joined Oklahoma Garden Clubs across Oklahoma as well as high school FFA organizations, county extension offices and other non-profit and municipal organizations across the state to plant all 77 Oklahoma Counties. According to the National Wildlife Federation, “Sowing wildflower plots is one way to help bees and other pollinators at a local level.” In addition to the Celebrate America 250 with Wildflowers program, Color Oklahoma provided various non-profit organizations more than 517 pounds of seeds that were spread along Oklahoma’s highways and turnpikes last December. The Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) planted the seeds for the highway plantings. Color Oklahoma.com was formed in 2002 and receives funding from the sale of wildflower license plates available at your local tag agency or from Service Oklahoma. The form to order a plate can also be downloaded from the Color Oklahoma website at https://coloroklahoma.com/color-oklahoma-license-plate-order-form/. Additional information on Oklahoma native wildflowers is available at https://oknativeplants.org. General Federation of Women’s Clubs (GFWC), is dedicated to enhancing the lives of others through volunteer community service. You can learn more about the volunteer activities clubwomen are performing in the Pittsburg County, Oklahoma area by contacting GFWC OK McAlester Fortnightly Club President, Brenda Calahan at 918-916-0947. |