buzz
CALL TO COMPASSION
J
ill Robey doesn’t want you to throw out those flowers. Instead, the New Canaan resident wants to spread the joy to others. That’s why she founded Flower Again; a new nonprofit organization born from her personal love of flowers. With the help of various local volunteers, Robey is looking to align herself with local floral designers and wedding and event planners in hopes of securing post-event floral arrangements in order to repurpose them and deliver new arrangements to those who could benefit from the of joy they bring. “With the help of my church, the Congregational Church of New Canaan, I have
FLOWER AGAIN BRINGS JOY AND CONNECTION TO THOSE
WHO NEED IT MOST
been doing this kind of thing for a number of years,” Robey explains. And indeed she has. Over the years, whenever the opportunity would arise, Robey would repurpose flower arrangements for the benefit of those in her own congregation, whether it meant bringing flowers to those who experienced sickness or death in their families or isolation due to aging. “I wanted to explore the idea of doing more and reaching more people who really feel lonely and isolated. This is about more than delivering them flowers, it’s about making that human connection. It’s about having the conversations with people and leaving them something beautiful like flowers.”
by julee k apl an
Here's how it works: Once alerted that a specific event is willing to donate their arrangements to Flower Again, Robey and a team of volunteers will go in, remove the arrangements, and then bring them to Robey’s home where they will work at making new arrangements. When finished, Robey’s team of volunteers will deliver the new bouquets to brighten the days of others in surrounding communities like nursing homes in Norwalk and Stamford. It’s Robey’s hope that volunteers will take a few moments with each person receiving the flowers to make that connection. When the flowers are nearing the end of their lives, volunteers will pick them back up to compost them and repurpose the vases they were in. “There’s so much waste that comes from large events like weddings or corporate events, so I really would love to do our part in order to reduce that and bring joy to others at the same time,” Robey says. In addition to floral arrangements, Robey says they’re in need of supply donations like vases and other flower-arranging tools. In order to assist, the New Canaan Human Services department at the Town Hall Annex is willing to take vases from anyone willing to donate. “I can’t think of a better place to launch an organization like this than in Fairfield County,” Robey says. “There are so many high-end events here and yet we are surrounded by those lower income areas that could really benefit from our services. So this is a real win-win.” More information about giving and volunteering can be found at floweragain.org.
newcanaandarienmag.com
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4/15/22 8:40 AM