Thank you for your generosity in supporting Desert Botanical Garden and Dinner on the Desert 2020. Ann Stanton, Chair; Tammy McLeod, Board of Trustee President; and I are very sad to confirm that the April 25 event is canceled.
During this challenging time, we hope that you—our closest and dearest friends—are remaining healthy, informed and optimistic. Although the Garden closed to visitors on March 20, we continue to be here for you as a source of desert beauty, inspiration and learning. In the coming days and weeks, I invite you to check dbg.org for stories about our beautiful spring blooms, as well as the care our dedicated team is taking of the priceless living plant collection.
For 81 years, the Garden has helped our community appreciate the beauty of the desert and care about it. The current COVID-19 pandemic is not the first time the Garden has faced a crisis. During the 40s, WWII gasoline rationing brought Garden activities to a halt and illness prohibited its caretakers and founders from sustaining the collection. A few faithful members, however, continued to make the long trek out to the Garden to water the plants, and their loyal efforts ensured the Garden’s survival.
Thanks to significant investments of time, talent and funds since the 40s, as well as dramatic growth in the Garden’s community of dedicated supporters, our organization is in a significantly stronger position today. Nonetheless, 99% of the Garden’s income is derived from private sources, and we will continue to depend on philanthropic gifts from individuals, companies and foundations to keep the Garden alive and well during the current crises.
I hope you will consider sustaining your 2020 Dinner on the Desert commitment to support the Garden’s current operating budget. Whatever you decide, please know how much I appreciate your interest in our mission, look forward to welcoming you back to the Garden when we re-open and to seeing you on April 24, 2021—the date of next year’s Dinner on the Desert.