Nov. 27, 2013:  Recently I attended a meeting, as a committee member, of the Bronxville Beautification Council, known to many as the BBC. This committee has done wonders for the Bronxville downtown area. Every year it solicits the 10708 area for funds to do its work.

Not only does it plant the triangles in the roadways with annuals every year, but it does many capital improvements. The area around the underpass has been totally done with BBC funds and the help of a very talented volunteer, Mary Rose Nihlen. The list goes on.

I am also a co-president of another gardening organization in Bronxville, Boulder Ledge Garden Club. This year we have been focusing on a four-year project to rejuvenate Bicentennial Park. This is the small park at the corner of Pondfield Road and Meadow Avenue. As a club we do not solicit funds from the community; our funds come from dues and special fundraisers. To help us reach this goal, we sent out a special fundraising brochure this spring.

There is another worthy cause at the corner of Crawford and Archer Roads, or the end of Dusenberry Road. The Nature Preserve of Bronxville, Eastchester, and Tuckahoe is a beautifully kept open space with paths, benches, and a butterfly garden named after Vicki Ford. This group presently sends the community a fundraising letter every two years to support the maintenance of the park.

It has come to my attention that the community of Bronxville may be a little confused. These fundraising letters arrive in your mail and you may feel that if you have given to one, you do not have to give to any of the others. Any donation is the giver's decision, but in this case it is hard to know to whom to give.

Each organization has its own goal. We are all involved with a common interest, the Village of Bronxville. However, each organization needs to raise its own funds to maintain the properties that it represents.

When you receive a solicitation in the mail from one of these organizations and would like to know more, please contact:

Bicentennial Park: Neely Bower, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Nature Preserve of Bronxville, Eastchester, and Tuckahoe: Nancy Vittorini, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Bronxville Beautification Council: George McKinnis, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Pictured here (rotating): The Nature Preserve, a triangle garden planted by the BBC, and Bicentennial Park.

Photos by N. Bower