Brief History of Civic Clubs and Community Garden by Ann

Creston Garden Club, PO Box 36, 

Creston, CA 93432

The Creston Thursday Gardener's Club began on May 19, 1960. Today, the name is simply the Creston Garden Club. It still meets on the third Thursday of each month,  often with expert speakers on all kinds of topics. The Garden Club  helps to maintain the all-volunteer community garden, which is located  right next to the old fire station (now Creston Community Center) on  Swayze Road. The club hosts a wonderful plant and bake sale every April  and planted the garden in the front of the new library, which opened in  2003 across Adams Street from Creston Elementary School. Membership is  growing annually, as more folks move here. See the Creston News History  Page for more history of this garden and its supporters.

     As you have no doubt noticed, the birch trees inside the huge  planter are surrounded by memorial bricks and bricks honoring local  residents. If you would like to purchase a brick (they are $75 each),  please call Judy at (805) 226-9489 and she will send or email you the  correct form.

      UPDATE 2014: The main focus now of the Garden Club is the upkeep  and development of the Community Volunteer Garden. As the Community  Center is developed, there will be more trees planted, and the center  will have a new parking lot and driving lanes. The Garden Club has grown  to about 45 active members. They like to go on field trips and have  visited many local businesses, such as local wineries and the olive farm  on La Panza. This is a very hard-working group of very nice women and  men. They have done many wonderful improvements to not only the  Community Garden, but also to many area resident properties by hosting  the plant sale each year.
      UPDATE 2015: The Garden Club is selling homemade pies this year  for Thanksgiving. The choices are deep-dish apple, pecan, and pumpkin,  served in beautiful, table-ready, glass pie plates! Check out the  Creston News Contacts/Links Page for contact info and watch for a flier  on the community bulletin board outside the post office! There is a  limit of 60 pies available. The club plans to hand out order forms at  Creston Classic Rodeo this year and also at the Creston Crazy Daze event  being held on October 3rd at the Garden.

      UPDATE June 2016: The water well inside the garden, which also  serves the new Community Center, began to go dry this month. Locals  began hand watering with water brought in from their own homes. Around  the second week of June, a local donated a 200-gallon water tank on a  small trailer with a hose bib to fill buckets. Around the 19th of June, a  local farmer (Noah) donated two 150-gallons water totes with gate  valves for filling buckets, plus buckets on a trailer. The temperatures  soared to over 105 degrees each day from June 20-29, so it was critical  to continue hand watering. Thankfully, a local resident with Filipponi  & Thompson Drilling donated the new well around the 23rd of June,  and it should be connected to the old plumbing shortly. There is still  the chance that a new pump will need to be purchased. A huge thanks to  everyone involved with "saving our garden," which was created back in  1992/1993 by Jim and Pat Fairchild. It is now lovingly maintained by the  Creston Garden Club.
     
      UPDATE Sept 2018: The club’s new year begins this month, as the  club activities run from September through June. The first meeting of  this year was today, Sept. 20th. The three "field trips" were announced  by our program chairs, and the October meeting will be held at Harmony  Lavender Farms in Atascadero. November's meeting will be at "Groves on  41" — an olive tree farm. February 2019 meeting will be held at the  Educated Gardener in downtown Santa Margarita. The club is growing now  and added three new members recently. The first volunteer garden work  day will be on Saturday, Sept 22nd at 8 a.m. and all local residents are  welcome to help out. Sheila has a list of all the garden areas that  need attention. The Christmas Party will be Dec. 13th at the Community  Center.

CATCH FUND, P.O. Box 14, Creston, CA 93432

(805) 610-0220

Since 1992, Creston Activities Town Center Helping Hands (C. A. T. C. H. ) Fund, under the direction of rockstar volunteer Rosie Hebron, has coordinated local clubs, individuals and business donors for the development of the community's first public meeting and gathering facility. For a detailed history of CATCH and the Creston Community Center, check this out. 

CATCH runs a variety of public events throughout the year to raise money for further imporvements to the property which is available to community nonprofits and for rent for special events and private parties.

Creston Women's Club, P.O. Box 63,

Creston, CA 93432 

The Creston Women's Club began in 1939 as the Creston Community Club with the purpose of getting together socially to meet neighbors, old and new, and to share items of community interest. Today, the club meets the first Monday of each month, except in July and August, and organizes fundraisers for its scholarship program, which provides cash awards to anyone living in the Creston Area attending any type of formal learning, such as college, trade school, flight school, nursing school, farrier school, whatever. During the 1950s and 1960s, according to the Creston history books, there was actually a real club house. During the 1980s and 1990s, the meetings were held in what was called the "Community Room," which was located just behind the elementary school office. Meetings moved into the school’s new mult-purpose room when the addition was completed in the early 2000s. The old community room was condemned and was finally torn down somewhere around 2007, if memory serves me. The janitor used to let us into the school on the first Monday of each month. However, in September of 2009, the janitor began working two different schools, so the club began meeting in the volunteer garden in the fall, and then moved to the church children's classrooms in January of 2010. Today, they meet in one of the trailers adjacent to Creston Community Center.

      At one time, there were four major fundraisers held by Creston Women’s Club for community benefit: the International Dinner held around late February; the Creston Spaghetti Feed, which coincides with the Wildflower Century cycling event in late April; Bingo Burger Bash, held the first weekend in June in the Volunteer Garden; and then the Chili Cook Off, held in the fall at the Rodeo Grounds or in the garden.

 UPDATE January 2014: The Women's Club has discontinued the International Dinner and the Chili Cook Off for now. For 2014, the club president is Rosie Hebron, who helped to re-start the club in the fall of 1984.

Currently, the Club meets in the small trailer next to the river at the old fire station at the end of Swayze Road, which will soon become the NEW COMMUNITY CENTER! Stay tuned! 

Creston Community Association, P.O. Box 84, Creston, 93432 

The Creston Community Swimming Pool was built in the spring of 1960 through the efforts of dozens of volunteer residents and local businesses. It officially opened on July 16, 1960, according to photos and information provided by Ruth Hord. Sadly, the 100-year floods of 1969 undermined the pool and part of it washed out in the river. Federal money came through and the pool was rebuilt. In 1978, Eve Bundy and a small group of concerned citizens got together to raise the funds needed to keep the pool free to everyone. The Creston Pool Fund Barbecue and Barn Dance was started and continued through 2004. The mission of the Creston Community Association is to put on fundraisers to maintain, insure, staff, and improve the community pool. In 2006, the CCA hosted its first Hawaiian-themed Luau Reverse Drawing Dinner on the patio at the Loading Chute. It was a huge success and was extremely well organized and well attended. A huge thank you to local resident, Vickie Bittle, for being a major part of the CCA for most of her life! She has done an incredible job as CCA secretary and also has been the gate lady at the entrance gate at the Creston Classic Rodeo since the first one in 1996. She is really an excellent record keeper. In 2009, the Creston Community Association chose a new theme for their annual fund raiser: the Beach Bash! It was a huge success, with nearly every seat full and a wonderful DJ. Everyone danced to rock and roll. County supervisor was unable to attend, but did make a cash donation to our pool fund. He sent a very nice letter with his donation check. 

UPDATE August 21, 2011: The Creston Community Association does a great job hosting their annual Pool Fund Party. This year, in addition to the dinner, dancing, games, silent and live dessert auctions, there was a very large poster with about 12 really great photos (enlarged to about 4" by 6") of the swimming pool as it was being built in the spring of 1960, with a short explanation of how this pool was created by the community, and how it began with just a few ladies at a PTA meeting talking about building a pool for the kids, and how the residents were asked to make a small cash donation to buy the materials and hire a contractor. The old photos are priceless. I hope that this large poster will someday hang at our soon-to-be built Creston Community Center.  

Creston Classic Rodeo, P.O. Box 121
Creston, CA  93432

In 1994, a small group of residents gathered to come up with a fundraiser to help raise the needed dollars for the center. Creston Classic Rodeo was then born and the very "first ever" rodeo was held in 1996. The first rodeo was held on the dirt on acreage belonging to the Webster family, behind the Creston Garden, which is next to the Creston Community Center (formerly Creston Volunteer Fire Station). Over the years, many residents have donated thousands of dollars to build bleachers, shade awnings, water lines, electrical panels, livestock pens, a VIP area, trees, etc. Linda Rohrer, of Rohrer's Hay and Feed, donated the entire Powder River Arena! 

UPDATE 2012: The sea train has been removed from the Rodeo Grounds area.

Friends of Creston Library (805) 237-3010

Creston Library has always been a very important part of our rural area. In order to move the library from the 16-foo-by-16-foot building on the corner of O’Donovan Road and Adams Street, to a larger building, a group of locals formed the "Friends of the Creston Library" in the mid-1990s. One of the first big fundraisers was a well-received art show and sale in October of 1996. It was held in one of the oldest and most historic buildings on our main street, Webster Road. The new modular library building opened in 2003 and is staffed by Kathleen "Cookie" Saffell. Her mother, Norma Heilmann, retired as the librarian in 1977 after many decades of service. Keep your eye out for posters around town that advertise a book sale now and then.       The library installed internet access and wi-fi in March of 2009. 

New for 2010 is the fund raiser created by the "Friends of the Creston Library": a monthly silent auction, starting in March, with the theme of "For the Gardener," which is a basket full of gardening tools and reference materials. There are also books for sale all the time, on a rack inside the library. The library contains dozens of excellent movies — both on DVD and VHS tape — available for checking out at no charge to you! The DVDs are available for one week, and the VHS tapes are available for three weeks. If the library doesn't have the particular show or film you want, you can request it from the system which includes the entire West Coast inventory! The entire history of the library is now an article posted on the Creston News History page. The Friends of the Library meets every month at noon on the second Tuesday. In 2015, Brooke became the president. Our goal is to landscape the back yard and set up tables for sitting and reading.

UPDATE 2018: In December of 2016, local residents, Kay and Paul Kunzler planted a pineapple guava bush and an 8-foot-tall White Robed Locust in the library back garde. Ann Spencer planted two heirloom purple lilac bushes around the same time. Brooke has planted numerous iris and other bulb-type plants along the new white plastic fence! 

UPDATE Sept. 2018: Thank you to Creston Women’s Club President Jennifer Best, local citizen and volunteer Kay Kunzler and a committed crew of Creston 4H Club members for weeding and working the back yard of the Library. Another "work day" is planned for this fall to continue the beautification of our back yard!

     The Creston Ladies Poker Club has been meeting since 1984 around town at the member's homes. Additionally, there have been assorted trips to Laughlin, to the Mid-State Fair, and entries in the Creston Parade, which was held for decades in conjunction with the Annual June Pool Fund Barbecue. The last year of the Pool Fund Barbecue was 2004.

The Creston Men's Club originated in 1994 with the purpose of helping the community fulfill its needs and for fellowship. Activities over the years have included the Big Buck Contest, Halloween for the kids, firewood raffles, and, more recently, their incredible food booth at the Creston Classic Rodeo and their major fundraiser, the Reverse-Drawing dinner, held at the Loading Chute in May. Each year, the Men's Club awards cash scholarships to area students, helping them to afford a higher education. In the summer of 2007, the club invested in a club house/sea train, which is located behind the Volunteer Fire Station.

     UPDATE 2018: I do not have the current mailing address for this club. This club is quite active and awards a "Citizen of the Year" at the annual Christmas Street Party held on the very last day, before Christmas, that the post office delivers mail. This club also cooks on an open grill the amazing breakfast burritos and the fantastic sausage that are served during the street party. Additionally, they have a large food booth (tri-tip) at the annual Creston Classic Rodeo, held in mid-September since 1996.

Creston 4-H Club

(805) 239-7817

There's far more to 4H than raising animals. Projects for members ages 5 to 18 include darn near anything an adult volunteer is willing to lead, from raising prize-winning hogs to sewing, cooking to photography, arts and crafts to quiz jam.

In 2014, Valerie Best became the first Creston 4H member to qualify for California Classic 4H State Show. She returned again in 2015. By 2019, the project, led by Laurie Ridgeway, took several riders to state including Ella Mitchell, Olivia Ridgeway and Malaya. 

Traditionally meets the first Wednesday of each month at 7 p.m. Check for current schedule  and location.