Garden Club of Toronto and Highway of Heroes Living Tribute ~ A Partnership

It was the summer of 2015, and on a patio in midtown Toronto, six people gathered to discuss an idea. “How can the Garden Club of Toronto and the Highway of Heroes Living Tribute work together?” It was Michael de Pencier and Elaine Solway who gathered Scott Bryk, the Executive Director of Highway of Heroes Living Tribute, along with Judy Tinning, Suzanne Firth and Amanda Cameron from the Garden Club of Toronto to figure it out.

A balance between planting trees and establishing a traditional garden was needed. The location had to be on the Highway of Heroes but off the direct right-of-way so volunteers could participate. After some diligent searching an ideal location was chosen at the symbolic end of the Highway of Heroes – in front of the Coroner’s Office at Keele Street and the 401.

Although the site began as a patch of grass, over time and with a lot of hard work, a garden emerged and on a wet and cold morning in May 2016, the volunteers arrived to plant.