Encinitas Holliday Parade Selects Evelyn Weidner as Grand Marshal

By Carolyn Roy Cope

This year's Encinitas Holiday Parade is “Growing Holiday Cheer” - therefore it was no wonder that our focus would be on this particular flower grower, this leader in our community, this VERY active senior, this remarkable woman, Evelyn Weidner. Our vibrant and adorable local lady whose roots began over 45 years ago, when her late husband Bob (along with their 3 children) shoveled deep roots into our flower growing history and helped plant Encinitas on the world floral map.   

Evelyn's innovative community outreach does not stop at the edge of her fields. A lifetime of helping Encinitas grow as the owner of Weidner's Gardens, she strives to make gardening both fun and successful. A “Dig Your Own” field of thousands of pansies in winter transforms into a summer flower show of “Dig your Own” Tuberous Begonias. She sells thousands of poinsettias and shares this passion with the only behind-the-scenes Poinsettia Tour in Southern California. Weidner’s Gardens’ ever-popular Lady Bug Festival delights young and old. 

Evelyn also plows her cultivating fingers into the San Dieguito Heritage Museum's strive to keep history alive, serving on the Board of Directors. Evelyn has donated her gardens for many a fundraiser for the Community Resource Center and serves on the Board there as well. The growing popularity of the Lima Bean Festival in Encinitas was the brainstorm of Evelyn, capitalizing on our beginnings as a community of dry bean farming in rural Olivenhain.

Regionally, Evelyn brought more attention to our hometown when she was elected by her peers as the first woman Farmer of The Year in 2005.  She remains an active member of the Encinitas Rotary Club since 1991, where the motto is “Service Above Self.”   

We are so proud of this “leading Lady” of Encinitas to be our Grand Marshal for the Encinitas Holiday Parade 2013.

Congratulations Evelyn Weidner!

More information on the 2013 holiday parade can be found here: http://www.encinitasca.gov/index.aspx?page=30&recordid=604&returnURL=%2findex.aspx