reflections - 2020

 Reflecting back to the 2020 year at Semmes Heritage  Park!
 The park remains a wonderful testimony to the resilience of Semmes to remember its past as we move forward.  With the world pandemic of Covid-19 our field trips, tours and event activities have been very limited.
Before the pandemic began to limit activities, we had a home school group field trip, senior adult tour and our annual Camellia Festival.  Heritage Day and Old Fashioned Christmas were cancelled.
The 2020 Camellia Festival  was a great success.  This chair of the Camellia Festival was Alice Dodd Baker. Alice’s parents were Tom and Elizabeth Dodd, (Tom Dodd Nursery) who participated in the first Camellia Festival in 1949. The current Camellia festival was revived in 2013 as an historical event to commemorate Semmes Nursery History.
Heritage Day was cancelled; however, the Al200 commission recognized Semmes Heritage Day as an outstanding event   in the Alabama’s 200th birthday celebration, 2017-2019 with the presentation of a bronze plaque. The plaque has been installed on the school house.
 New additions to the park are a gazebo and a replica of hand draw well.  Repairs and maintenance have continued. The historic 1902 church bell was repaired and restored to the church belfry which was no small task.