By Lydia Pan | Posted on June 20, 2026
Our 20th anniversary celebration, which took place at the Arboretum Center for Education and Research on May 23rd, recaptured the spirit of the fledgling chapter shortly after it was chartered in May 2006 and reinforced its longstanding partnership with the Connecticut College Arboretum. The first Wild Ones chapter in New England came into being through the energy and purpose of Kathy Dame, then Assistant Director at the Arboretum and Nancy Livensparger, who served as the first President of the fledgling chapter. Nancy still lives in Portland, CT, but was unable to attend, so she sent a letter that was read aloud by Lydia in conjunction with her introductory remarks.
Read Lydia’s Introductory Remarks
Long-time members as well as a few recent recruits enjoyed reminiscing and exchanging stories, comparing “then” and “now”. Mike Wuenscher, who had been the chapter’s photographer before the era of ubiquitous camera phones, assembled a slide show of photos from the chapter’s first decade for a trip down memory lane. We then took seats in the Black Box Theater for a screening of “The Extraordinary Caterpillar,” a new documentary on the importance of these fascinating but frequently overlooked organisms in discussions of ecosystem health. If you haven’t seen it, you should try to catch one of the many showings being scheduled across our region. After the film, we gathered for a group photo before digging into the scrumptious cake decorated with buttercream mountain laurel blossoms.
See the anniversary slideshow by Mike Wuenscher: “Celebrating 20 Years of Wild Ones in Connecticut”
Group photo, left to right: (Back & middle rows) Fatima Matos, Mike Wuenscher, Claire Calabretta, Chris Cyr, Kathryn Cyr, Clayton Penniman, Sue Augustyniak, Susan Kinsman, Charlotte Pyle, David Silsbee, Heather Laidlaw; (Front row) Beth Ann Loveland Sennett, Chris Penniman, Gail Reynolds, Lydia Pan. Backdrop is a frame from “The Extraordinary Caterpillar” film.
Congratulations to the Mountain Laurel Chapter as it heads into its third decade, steadfast in its commitment to supporting biodiversity and a healthy planet by connecting people to nature through native plants!