Sunday, November 15, 2026
Calusa Garden Club members gather behind landscaped site of the rock and plaque.
From left: President of Calusa Garden Club Sandy Wallen, Charlette Roman, Rich Lutz, Ron Rutledge, Allyson Richards, Eva Schliesser, and Linda Colombo, past club president. Photo by Maria Lamb
Linda Colombo (right), past and current presidents of the Garden Club observe, from left: Linda Turner, Opi DeFalco, Dale DeFeo and Sandy Wallen.
Unveiling the plaque. Photos by Sara Wolf
On April 24, Calusa Garden Club of Marco Island dedicated a plaque commemorating the Garden Club’s 1984 adoption of Leigh Plummer Park on Barfield Drive as a Garden Club community project. Guests of
honor at the dedication were Eva Schliesser, Co-Founder of the Garden Club, Marco Island City Council member Charlette Roman, and Marco Island Parks and Recreation Committee members Allyson Richards, Rich Lutz and Ron Rutledge.
The plaque was generously donated by Dr. Carlos Portu, also a member of the Parks and Recreation Committee, who could not be present for the dedication ceremony. The Garden Club donated the
granite rock supporting the plaque and landscaped the site of the granite rock and plaque. The park is named for Mr. Leigh Plummer, a long time resident of Marco Island and past president of Marco Island Civic Association.
At the dedication of Leigh Plummer Park in 1984, Ms. Schliesser said, “It is my goal in life to educate our community about our beautiful native plants and to
help get rid of the exotics.” The Garden Club followed these goals by planting native Southwest Florida plants in Leigh Plummer Park.
For more information contact calusagardenclub@aol.com, or visit calusa.org, or the Club’s Facebook page, Calusa Garden Club.
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