We encourage our members to take part in Flower Festivals when invited to do so by local churches and sometimes stately homes and even a castle - Ripley in fact which we have decorated three times.

These festivals are the best way to involve members of all abilities in the art of flower arranging. Some of our members are City & Guilds qualified and so can pass on their knowledge to the less competent members.

If there are sufficient new members lessons can be arranged for a small fee. Our yearly programme involves workshops in addition to demonstrations.

The club enters Harrogate Spring Flower Show; two volunteers are asked to represent the club, and we are also represented at the Great Yorkshire Show and the Harrogate Autumn Flower Show. No one is pushed into doing anything they are not happy about.

In 1999 our entry at the Spring Flower Show was awarded Best in Show of the two club classes. In April 2000 members again produced floral displays for the Show and the club entry was awarded 5th prize.

In June 2000 a Flower Festival at Trinity Methodist Church in Harrogate entitled "Thine be the Glory" raised over £1600.

Three members of the club took part in the Area Flower Festival at Beverley Minster in June.

1st July 2000 the unveiling of a new statue of the Madonna and Child (sculptured by Ian Judd, a Yorkshire sculptor) took place at the 15th century shrine of Our Lady of the Crag in Knaresborough.
The shrine is a chapel carved out of the crag face in 1408 by a master mason "John the Mason". The chapel has a founding legend that the Virgin Mary saved the mason's son from being killed in a rockfall in the nearby quarry where John was working.
The shrine was awarded a grant by the Arts and Sacred Places Project, linked to the Millennium Commission. Local groups were involved in the project including Knaresborough Flower Club who enhanced the look of the shrine on the big day with arrangements of wild and garden flowers.

Photograph courtesy of Knaresborough Post

Pam also experienced success in the Knaresborough Horticultural Society Late Show in which she was awarded the Ladies Perpetual Trophy for most points in Flower Arranging.

Harrogate Autumn Flower Show The club took part in the decoration of the North East area of NAFAS presentation of the theme "Village Green" at the Harrogate Autumn Flower Show. Knaresborough's stand entitled "Village Shop" was a design based on a 1920-30s shop complete with entrance door and welcome mat (left). Flower arrangements depicted produce and goods on sale and all manner of plant and vegetable material was used to portray the goods. The shop's cat made out of clematis seeds was much admired.

In November 2000, Mrs Catherine Gledhill, a National demonstrator, delighted members and visitors with her demonstration entitled "A Christmas Spectacular". A donation of £50 from the proceeds of the raffle was made to St Michael's Hospice.