协会定位与宗旨
圣约瑟夫水花园协会（St. Joseph Area Water Garden Society，简称 SJWGS）坐落在美国密苏里州西北部的圣约瑟夫市，长期面向对池塘造景和水生植物有兴趣的本地区爱好者开放。协会的章程写明四件事：把想自建水景花园的人联合起来；通过信息和经验交流相互支持；增进会员之间的友谊；推动社区层面的小型水景项目。入会门槛低，会员构成以家庭和退休人员居多，也有少数景观从业者。
会费结构与月会安排
协会的年度会费结构简单：夫妻或一家人 15 美元，单人 10 美元，年度周期从一月到十二月。会员在线续费或新办都可以走站内 Membership 页面，也可下载 PDF 申请表邮寄。月会固定在每月第二个周四晚 7 点开，5 月到 9 月安排在会员家中轮流，10 月到来年 4 月则统一改在 Parkway Christian Fellowship 的下层南入口。每场月会通常安排一位主讲人，谈的内容从本地耐寒水生植物到鱼类越冬都有。
理事会与会员分工
现任理事会成员包括主席 Kirby Nickell、副主席 Mike Bagby、司库 Jodie Meschke、会员事务 Rita 与 Lindsay Wardlow；项目委员会由 Linda Nickell 和 Aleysha Bagby 牵头，池塘之旅委员会由 Mike 与 Aleysha Bagby 加上 Kirby 与 Linda Nickell 共同负责，网站维护由 Kirby Nickell 兼任，广告由 Susan Arn 负责，公关与历史档案由 Paula Bokay 负责，音响由 Mike Bagby 管理。多数岗位由会员轮值，没有专职人员。
年度池塘之旅与社区项目
协会最有影响力的对外活动是每年 6 月的池塘之旅（Pond Tour）。2026 年的活动定在 6 月 13 日和 14 日上午 10 点到下午 5 点，门票在 5 月 31 日前线上购买享半价优惠；活动当天则按全价售票。这项活动把会员自家花园集中向公众开放两天，花园之间沿市政道路自驾车可达，每家门口都有志愿者引导和停车指引。其他时间，协会的 Club Projects 板块记录会员在本地社区做的小型水景项目，例如在 Campus Family YMCA 的 Purpose Garden 里安装了一座无池塘式水景装置。
公开资源与会员花园
站内的 Resources 板块长期公开三类内容：一是引用国际睡莲与水景园艺学会（IWGS）的资源链接，二是 The International Waterlily Collection 的植物图片库，三是会员在月会上分享的本地经验和笔记。Photos 板块则按家庭分组展示会员花园的实景照片，对想自建池塘的访客起参考作用。站点本身在 2018 年 3 月 29 日重新上线，加入了在线入会和池塘之旅购票功能，方便新访客快速对接协会。
Charter and Audience
The St. Joseph Area Water Garden Society (SJWGS) sits in St. Joseph, in the northwest corner of Missouri, and is open to anyone in the region who wants to build a backyard water feature or grow aquatic plants. The society’s charter lists four aims: to unite people interested in creating a water garden for their own pleasure, to share information and experience among members, to build fellowship, and to take on small community water-feature projects. Membership skews toward families and retirees, with a handful of landscape professionals in the mix.
Dues and Monthly Meetings
Annual dues are kept simple: USD 15 per couple or family, USD 10 per single member, covering the calendar year from January through December. Members can renew or join online through the Membership page, or download the PDF application and mail it in. The regular monthly meeting is held on the second Thursday of each month at 7 p.m. From May through September the meetings rotate among members’ homes, and from October through April they move to the lower-level south entrance of Parkway Christian Fellowship. Each meeting usually features one speaker on a topic ranging from cold-hardy aquatic plants to overwintering fish.
Officers and Member Roles
The current officers include President Kirby Nickell, Vice President Mike Bagby, Treasurer Jodie Meschke, and Membership leads Rita and Lindsay Wardlow. The Program Committee is run by Linda Nickell and Aleysha Bagby. The Pond Tour Committee is staffed by Mike and Aleysha Bagby together with Kirby and Linda Nickell. Kirby Nickell also serves as Webmaster; Susan Arn handles advertising; Paula Bokay covers public relations and historian duties; and Mike Bagby manages audio at the meetings. Most positions rotate among members, and the society has no paid staff.
Annual Pond Tour and Community Projects
The largest single public-facing event each year is the Pond Tour, held over a weekend in June. The 2026 tour is set for June 13 and 14 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tickets bought online before May 31 are sold at half price; tickets on the day of the event are sold at the full price. Member gardens are open to drive-up visitors over the two days, with volunteer hosts at each property to direct parking and answer questions. Outside the tour, the Club Projects page documents small water features members have built for the local community, including a pondless water feature installed in the Purpose Garden at the Campus Family YMCA in St. Joseph.
Public Resources and Member Gardens
The Resources page carries three ongoing sections: links to the International Waterlily and Water Gardening Society (IWGS), the image library at The International Waterlily Collection, and notes from member presentations at recent monthly meetings. The Photos page groups member-garden pictures by household, including gardens belonging to Kirby and Linda, Mike and Aleysha, Dennis and Jeanne, Ken and Pam, and Kirby and Martha. The site itself was relaunched on March 29, 2018, with online membership applications and Pond Tour ticket sales built in, so a new visitor can join and plan a tour visit in a single sitting.
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