2018 American Daylily Society
Regional Service Award Winner
Donna Peck
by Richard Peck

Donna arrived in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 2000, when her husband, Richard, became President of the University of New Mexico.

They met Ned and Betty Roberts who suggested they should raise Daylilies. Ned and Betty recruited the Albuquerque Daylily Society to plant daylilies in various areas of the University lawn. Ned also planted many of his hybridized daylilies with the understanding when they bloomed, and were “worthy” Donna would call him to come look at them. She was thus the first to see Ned’s Hemerocallis 'Desert Icicle', H. 'Skinwalker', and H. 'Lobo Lucy', among others in the garden.

There was a small spider, which Ned thought unworthy of registration. Donna kept it and hybridized it with H. 'Nutmeg Elf' and other small daylilies to create a miniature red spider which recently reached the head table at the Albuquerque Flower Show. She’s now working to multiply and register it because local members have asked to buy it.

Shortly after arriving in Albuquerque the Pecks joined ADS and became active locally. Donna served as President of ADS, Secretary, and has been Co-Vice President in charge of programs in recent years. She was 2008-13 Region 6 ADS Director and was the first Ombudsman for ADS inviting from the ADS membership questions that she and her committee could try to answer. Many such Q & A conversations appeared in her column, “Ask the Ombudsman” in various Regional newsletters.

In 1994, the Pecks' garden was on tour for the Regional Meeting held in Albuquerque. She had the Awards Beds in their garden, and her favorite (which didn’t bloom the day of voting) was named H. 'Donna Peck' by Betty Roberts.

Donna served as the 1998-99 Region 6 Newsletter Editor. She is an ADS Garden judge, Exhibition Judge, and also an Exhibition Judges Instructor.

She had been Judges Chair for the Albuquerque’s flower show each year. For her own club’s flower show, her house is always open to hosting the Judges with a potluck the night before the show.

At the 2011 Regional held by her club, she was co-chair and her garden was the location of Bill Maryott’s presentation,"Jjudging/Looking at Daylilies”.

She has been instrumental in building up her local club by doing things out of the box. Her local club had an informational forum titled “What you always wanted to know about Daylilies but were afraid to Ask” and had to close the doors with 125 people in attendance, which resulted in gaining many new members.

She also organizes a daylily sale that benefits the Placitas Library when the Placitas Garden Tour is held annually.

As co-chair of the coming 2019 Region 6 Meeting, she is working on a session with another member, Jane Butel, (popular Southwest chef and Cookbook editor) titled “Cooking with Lilies and Chilis."

Donna has been energetic and active in Daylilies, with no signs of slowing down any time soon.

Congratulations to Donna Peck for being selected as 2018 AHS Region 6 Service Award recipient.

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