La Crosse Tribune Article

WKBT - July 13, 2007

La Crosse's Riverside International Friendship Gardens are really taking off.

Thursday the mayor of La Crosse's sister city in Dubna, Russia was on hand for a ceremony celebrating the dedication of the first of four gardens for La Crosse's sister cities in Russia, France, China and Germany.

Organizers of the gardens say partnering with sister cities helps residents learn how similar we are, and helps promote diversity. "You realize there's real beauty in another culture," says Chuck Hanson with the Riverside International Friendship Gardens. "It may not be ours, but that doesn't mean we can't appreciate that culture. We invite the people from those sister cities, like Dubna, to be in La Crosse and really know what we like as Americans."

Organizers of the gardens plan to hold a grand opening for the public in August.

All content © Copyright 2004 - 2007, WorldNow and WKBT. All Rights Reserved.

La Crosse Tribune Article

 The idea began 13-years ago in San Diego. That's where Chuck Hanson attended a sister cities conference and brought the idea back to La Crosse.

The idea is a garden. And you can see what he and a lot of volunteers have begun in Riverside Park. But Chuck and those volunteers hope the garden will have an effect well beyond the plot of land on which it sits.

The sign says Riverside International Friendship Gardens. Located on the north end of Riverside Park in La Crosse, it's a simple concept. Gardens reflecting native plants of La Crosse's sister cities.

Chuck Hanson is the first to say the gardens are the result of work from a lot of people. But Chuck has been instrumental from the beginning

In fact, the concept for the gardens developed after he attended a sister cities conference in 1993. But Chuck suggested expanding the idea. So rather than one garden reflecting our sister city in China alone, why not develop gardens to reflect them all, allowing people of all ages to stop by and take in the beauty. Chuck says that's the concept which is simple enough.

Right now you can see the landscaping and plants representing Louyang China and Epinal France. They're still working to complete gardens for Friedburg Germany and Dubna Russia.

They'll officially open the gardens late next spring or early summer. For more information or if you want to help you can visit their website at riversidegardens.org.

Updated: October 21, 2006, 7:16 am

By Tribune staff

By ANNE JUNGEN / La Crosse Tribune

Somewhere between the black mounds of compost and green Chinese ornamental trees, a vision became reality.

“It’s a wonderful feeling to see hundreds of hours coming together with volunteer time and energy to make the garden happen,” said Riverside International Friendship Gardens President Chuck Hanson.

Riverside International Friendship Gardens was constructed on 1.2 acres on the north side of Riverside Park on the banks of the Mississippi River to honor La Crosse’s relationship with its sister cities and pay tribute to their cultures and traditions.

The garden will resemble native gardens in La Crosse’s sister cities in Epinal, France; Dubna, Russia; Luoyang, China; and Friedberg, Germany. Gardens are planned for sister cities in Norway and Ireland.

Fifty volunteer gardeners broke ground on the Chinese garden, planting a variety of foliage of native Chinese plants, including pink peonies and ornamental trees and shrubs inside the fenced garden guarded by a concrete moon gate with granite dragon sculptures.

“It’s a transformation of landscape,” said Friendship Gardens board member and master gardener Jackie Jorgenson.

The organization plans to break ground on the French garden next weekend, followed closely by the German and Russian plots.

The garden is a partnership between the city of La Crosse, the Riverside International Friendship Gardens board of directors and the Bluff Country Master Gardeners.

Hanson said major planting is set to be finished by the end of June, with the four central gardens “substantially completed” by the end of August.

The organization hopes the garden can become both a tourist attraction and a place for residents to visit.

The garden will also include a bridge, waterfalls, ponds, benches and evening lighting.

Site preparation began in November 2004. The project was postponed about a year due to construction, weather and fundraising delays, said garden board member Cheryl Hanson. About $220,000 was raised for the four gardens, she said.

The garden requires tender care from the community. Master gardeners will be available to help volunteers from 6 to 8 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays and 8 to 11 a.m. Saturdays from July through October.

Central High School foreign exchange teacher Xinli Zhai said the garden accurately mimicked the gardens in her native China, though on a much smaller scale.

“I’m glad I had the chance to donate my time here in the Chinese garden,” she said.