The park district had the grass removed and the ground tilled, and all the plants were donated by Greene County master gardeners or from her garden, Tinka said, so “there was no money involved.”
Tinka, who is retired from Wright Patterson Air Force Base, spent 28 years in logistics with the Air Force Materiel Command and four years with the Security Assistant Center. She grew up in Bellbrook and graduated from Bellbrook High School.
While the garden is not yet totally mature, Trisha Grady Hannah, program coordinator for the Bellbrook-Sugarcreek Park District, found it perfect for hosting a Monarch Madness program on Aug. 6. Participants in the free family program learned about common backyard butterflies and their life cycles.
They made butterfly crafts, looked at butterfly books, and tried their hand at catching butterflies in the garden with butterfly nets. Four-year-old Harrison Panstingel of Bellbrook was among those shouldering a net in search of butterflies during the event.
Hannah used her camera’s zoom lens to capture a picture of a Silver-spotted Skipper sitting on a white Butterfly bush in the garden and a bee enjoying a purple coneflower’s nectar. The program concluded with a painted lady butterfly release.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2341 or kullmer@DaytonDailyNews.com.
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