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How Lotusland Became Montecito's World- Renowned Garden LETTER from the CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

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How Lotusland Became Montecito's World- Renowned Garden LETTER from the CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER NEWSLETTER • SUMMER 2018 OPENING THE GARDEN How Lotusland Became Montecito's World- Renowned Garden LETTER FROM THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Dear Members and Friends, DURING OUR 25TH ANNIVERSARY LOTUSFEST CELEBRATION on July 8th, we take 695 Ashley Road time to revel in the ephemeral beauty of our namesake, the Indian lotus. Each flower Santa Barbara, California 93108 lasts two days only, but the extravagant profusion of blooms brightens the water garden 805.969.3767 • www.lotusland.org all summer. As the days shorten with the receding season, 2018 BOARD OF TRUSTEES the lotus plants slowly go dormant in autumn, their rhizomes Daniel Bifano, President resting deep in mud, leaving the pool to appear empty. Belle Hahn Cohen Geoff Crane The annual life cycle of the lotus reminds me of the paradigm Lesley Cunningham of abundance and scarcity. The quote, “No mud, no lotus,” William M. Daugherty by Buddhist monk Thích Nhất Hạnh, teaches us that one is Ian M. Fisher essential to the other, and beyond our melancholy in time of Dorothy H. Gardner paucity we can expect joy in the returning time of plenty. David M. Jones Joseph Marek Our 2018 gala, entitled Lotus Rising: Lotusland Celebrates Suzanne Mathews Gems of the Garden, has two themes. The first, Lotus Rising, Mimi Michaelis Alexandra Morse cheers the return of the lotus blooms that peak at the end of July, for which our gala is Connie Pearcy perfectly timed. This theme also acknowledges the sorrow of our community’s recent Eileen Rasmussen suffering and losses, but rejoices for our community’s returning strength and beauty. Stephen P. Schaible George Schoellkopf The second theme, Gems of the Garden, celebrates the remarkable vision of our garden Mick Thomas founder, Madame Ganna Walska. She loved gems, carefully selecting both gems and Caroline R. Thompson jewelers with whom she could collaborate to create extraordinary pieces, and in her Rick Vitelle lifetime she assembled an incredible collection of jewels for which she was well known. Crystal Wyatt Yasmine Zodeh When Ganna Walska arrived at Lotusland, she turned her creative vision and energy into amassing a new collection of “gems” — the rare plants that fill her unique and LIFETIME HONORARY TRUSTEES exquisite garden. Merryl Brown Robert J. Emmons Ganna Walska went beyond what any garden designer would dare by carefully selecting Arthur R. Gaudi precious stones, rocks and object d’art that, when inserted into the garden, complimented Kisa Heyer the plants they were nestled among. Before she was finished, Ganna Walska made the sensationally bold move of selling a significant portion of her jewelry collection Gwen Stauffer specifically to raise $1 million to fund her final collection of horticultural gems, the Chief Executive Officer cycads, which are the most important scientific collection at Lotusland. Ganna Walska Rebecca Anderson called the rarest of these — three Encephalartos woodii — her crown jewels. Director of Development Diane Figueroa, CPA Lotusland Celebrates is our only — but crucially important — fundraising event, Director of Finance made even more important this year by the income losses we are facing from the Bob Craig winter disasters. Yet, even in this scarcity, the garden gives us an abundance of beauty, Director of Marketing tranquility and delight. Tyler Diehl We hope you will visit the garden this summer to view the lotuses, count blessings, feel Director of Gardens and Facilities contentment, and be transformed. Bambi Leonard Membership Manager Gwen L. Stauffer Chief Executive Officer Paul Mills Curator of the Living Collections MISSION Dorothy Shaner Director of Public Programs We preserve and enhance the unique, historic estate of Madame Ganna Walska, care for and improve its collections, and develop its conservation and horticulture Printed by Jano Graphics programs, so they educate us, inspire us, and advance our understanding and Designed by Leslie Lewis Sigler appreciation of the importance of plants in our lives and in the life of the planet. 2 SUMMER 2018 LOTUSLAND WELCOMES NEW TRUSTEES LOTUSLAND IS PLEASED to announce the addition of Stephen P. Schaible and Rick Vitelle to our Board of Trustees. STEPHEN P. SCHAIBLE is a Senior Advisor with Evercore Partners, a global independent investment bank specializing in mergers and acquisitions. In a 36 year career he has lived and worked in New York, London and Tokyo. Before joining Evercore in 2007 he headed the global chemicals industry practice at Citigroup, and prior to that, at J.P. Morgan. He moved to Santa Barbara from New York City in 2012 with his partner, Daron Builta, and is actively involved with the Music Academy of the West and All-Saints-by-the-Sea. Stephen has been a member of the Lotusland Finance Committee since 2016, and also serves on the board of the Family Independence Initiative, an innovative Oakland, CA, organization dedicated to changing the SUMMER 2018 narrative around families in poverty in the United States. Stephen has a deep love of gardens and landscape architecture, Contents and recently completed an extensive re-landscaping of his Montecito garden, working with Isabelle Greene. He is a 1981 graduate of Princeton University with a degree in history. 2 Letter from the Chief Executive Officer 3 New Trustees – Stephen P. Schaible and Rick Vitelle RICK VITELLE is currently the Executive Vice President and 4 How Lotusland Became Montecito’s former CFO of CalAmp Corp., a World Renowned Garden technology company providing 6 New Gardeners wireless communications solutions. 6 Horticultural Happenings Previously he served as CFO of 7 Collection News – Exceptional Plants: SMTEK International, an electronics Jubaea chilensis, A Monumental Palm manufacturing services provider, Corporate Controller of Data-Design Laboratories, a diversified 8 Lotusland Celebrates technology company and Senior Manager with Price Waterhouse, Gems of the Garden where he earned his CPA license. He holds a B.S. in Business 10 Japanese Garden Renovation Administration from Cal Poly Pomona where he graduated summa 11 The Lotus Society – cum laude and an MBA from UCLA. Annual Appreciation Event Rick and his wife Sheila live in Ventura County and Rancho 12 Membership – Shop and Save Mirage. During their travels they have toured dozens of public 13 Volunteer Appreciation Picnic and private botanical gardens throughout Europe, Morocco, South Africa, South America and Asia. Closer to home, Rick and Sheila 13 Volunteer Profile – Al Ronyecz are supporters of Ganna Walska Lotusland (since 2003), The 14 Help Make Our Wishes Come True Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens, Ventura Botanical 14 Reception for Prospective Docents Gardens and The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens in Palm Desert. Rick is also a member of the Cactus & Succulent Society of 15 Upcoming Events America and the Mediterranean Garden Society. 19 Garden Shop LOTUSLAND.ORG 3 OPENING THE GARDEN How Lotusland Became Montecito’s World- Renowned Garden By Laura M. Bridley, AICP WHEN VISITORS MARVEL at the beauty long-time law firm, recollected how concerned about conditional use permits of Lotusland during tours and events, surprised the early Board and staff in general, and had already argued against they may never realize the tenacity it took were with reactions from some of the a simple request for more enrollment from Lotusland’s first trustees and staff to neighbors. “Sharing Lotusland with at Westmont College. These issues open the gardens to the public. It was a the public and preserving 37 acres of were tied to concerns about a regional controversial and passionate story in important botanical resources seemed drought. Several people even suggested Montecito that led to Lotusland’s opening like such a good thing,” observed Mr. that subdividing Lotusland for dozens day 25 years ago. Gaudi, while shaking his head at the of single family homes was preferable to memory of how hard it became. opening it as a public garden. The request When Madame Ganna Walska passed by Lotusland to establish itself as a pre- Madame’s history of garden tours and away in 1984, her Foundation focused on eminent botanic garden proved far more events was the basis for the Foundation’s garden clean-up, building maintenance, difficult than the early trustees and staff first application concept to the County and setting up an operating organization had imagined. to transition the property from a private that eventually included a request for estate to a world class public garden. For up to 30,000 visitors annually. That Following multiple town hall meetings decades, Madame Walska had welcomed application was opposed, largely by and hearings, Lotusland eventually thousands of people each year for tours several Montecito residents who were revised its application down to 13,700 of her garden, typically as fundraisers for other organizations in Santa Barbara. But after her death, the Foundation had to overcome challenges from the community to keep that tradition alive, even for a very small number of people, while it sought a formal conditional use permit (CUP) from Santa Barbara County. Key people leading the endeavor during those early years included Trustees Arthur R. Gaudi, Madame’s estate attorney, Carol Valentine, who also served as chair of the Montecito Water District board of directors from 1976 to 1991, and Reginald Faletti, Madame’s accountant and advisor. They soon hired Steven Timbrook, Ph.D. as Lotusland’s Executive Director in 1986, and the journey began. Mr. Gaudi, still of counsel with Price, Postel & Parma, LLP, Madame Walska’s Ribbon Cutting ceremony with Lotusland Trustees B. Jo Drake, Arthur Gaudi, Carol Valentine, 4 SUMMER 2018 Steven Timbrook (Executive Director) and Michael Towbes, Trustee. (Photo: Bill Dewey) visitors per year, and 225 days of operation and a host of other restrictions to ensure it would fit in with the neighborhood with no impacts or change, but this revised application still met with resistance. Controversy persisted in letters to newspaper editors, and at hearings of the Cold Spring School Board, the Montecito Association, the County Planning Commission and eventually the County Board of Supervisors.
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