Susan Anderson, 2021 Cyber Convention Chair
Thank you from Susan Anderson
African violets connect us! As we celebrate AVSA’s 75th Anniversary, the Cyber Convention team wanted to ensure violet enthusiasts could enjoy sharing their successes with growing and showing African violets. Making those connections happen was the purpose behind this Cyber Diamond Convention.
On behalf of the entire Cyber Convention team, Thank You for joining us and participating. We hope you have enjoyed the vast variety of activities that were provided this year. When you get a chance, please thank everyone that worked to make this convention a reality. They are an especially talented and dedicated group!
Greatest thanks go out to the following: Candace Baldwin, Richard Craft, Joyce Stork, Louise Cheung, and Winston Goretsky. They have gone way above and beyond. They built the beautiful website and all the pages on which the convention was hosted. I am sure they never imagined that they would be constructing web pages when they joined a violet society, and yet they stepped up to the challenge and have delivered in style! The 75th Anniversary Cyber Diamond Celebration would not have happened without their dedication, perseverance, creativity, and enthusiasm. Thank you!
It is truly inspiring to see the many, many plants and designs members have shared for the showroom and new introduction galleries. All the photos have made gorgeous displays. I look forward to seeing these plants at future in-person conventions.
The educational presentations and tours were outstanding! Thank you to everyone involved in producing these programs; they take a significant amount of time and effort to create. To the presenters, your expertise sets you apart. Thank you for sharing your knowledge.
The cocktail hours, Bingo game night, scavenger hunt, and the auction events were such great fun! Thank you to our social activities team for managing these events, and to our donors and winners for supporting AVSA. These interactive activities were particularly enjoyable because it offered the opportunity to really connect with other attendees, chat and learn from one another, and support AVSA. We now know how to Zoom and have had lots of practice.
A special thank you, to Mary Corondan, for joining me in chairing a second online convention. Together, we have learned a lot and I am so very proud of what our team has produced.
AVSA’s 75th Anniversary Cyber Diamond Convention will be remembered for years to come. I hope you all picked up a commemorative souvenir pin to mark the occasion and will wear it proudly. Moreover, I hope you have learned something new and made a few new friends along the way. That’s what AVSA conventions are all about – sharing the joy of growing and showing African violets!
Happy African Violet Week!
Susan Anderson, Convention Chair
Mary Corondan, 2021 AVSA Cyber Show Chair
Thank You from Mary Corondan
For AVSA’s second virtual convention, the committee chairs had the goal of providing a convention that was as close to a live event as possible. Since the pandemic, most of our society has become proficient in video conferencing. This has made possible live virtual events such as bingo, get togethers, the auction, shows and judges breakfast, meetings, and the society awards and installation banquet. Gratitude is expressed to Candace Baldwin, Richard Craft, Winston Goretsky, Joyce Stork, and Louise Cheung for their leadership and technical expertise. Without it, this convention would not have happened.
After experiencing over a year without a live show nationwide, it is encouraging and inspirational to have the show experience again. Growers from across the nation and beyond have submitted photos for your viewing pleasure. There are 204 beautiful exhibits by 54 talented exhibitors. The exhibit breakdown is as follows: 137 African violets, 48 other gesneriads, 17 designs, and two special exhibits. There were 54 exhibitors: 49 from the United States, four from Canada and one from Portugal. The most exhibited varieties were ‘Rob’s Boolaroo’ and ‘Ness’ Crinkle Blue.’ Iowa, Minnesota, Texas, and Virginia had the highest representation of exhibitors with four from each state. Thirty-six affiliate clubs were represented. The affiliate with the highest participation was Tidewater African Violet Society of Virginia. A heartfelt thank you to the exhibitors for entering such gorgeous plants and designs in the show.
The educational programs are being offered by experts in their field. Be sure to attend every one of them. The time required to video and edit a presentation is far greater than it would be for an in-person event.
It has been a pleasure to work with Susan Anderson who follows every detail along the way to ensure a smoothly operating convention. The entire list of committee chairs went above and beyond in the numerous hours, days, and months it took to bring you a quality online event. I cannot say enough about the hard work and sacrifice that has gone into this convention. Many have worked over 15 hours a day to bring you the Cyber Diamond Celebration Convention to commemorate AVSA’s 75th Anniversary.
Attendance at the Get-Togethers was very rewarding in that we had the pleasure of seeing so many familiar faces we have missed so dearly over the past year. Hopefully, a live event is in our future for 2022 in Little Rock. In the meantime, relax and enjoy an entire week of pleasure during the Cyber Diamond Celebration!
Mary Corondan, Show Chair
Thanks to these volunteers
who made the 2021 AVSA Cyber Diamond Celebration possible!
CYBER DIAMOND CELEBRATION * CONVENTION AND SHOW CHAIRS
Convention Chair………………………………. Susan Anderson
Show Chair………………………………………… Mary Corondan
Technology………………………………………… Winston Goretsky
Richard Craft
Tom Glembocki
Website………………………………………………. Candace Baldwin
Richard Craft
Joyce Stork
Louise Cheung
Graphic Design…………………………………… Roxanne Clapp
Schedule…………………………………………….. Mary Corondan
Susan Anderson
Classification and Entries…………………… Susan Anderson
Joe Bruns
Mary Corondan
Penny Smith-Kerker
Publicity……………………………………………. Joyce Stork
Beth Baker
Educational Exhibit…………………………… Louise Cheung
New Introductions……………………………. Joe Bruns
Annie Rieck
Vladimir Kalgin
Beth Baker
Presentations……………………………………. Joyce Stork
Richard Craft
Presenters.……………………………………… Dianne Duggan
Rich Follett
Julie Mavity-Hudson
Sandra Skalski
Dr. Jeff Smith
Terri Vicenzi
Commercial Salesroom……………………… Joyce Stork
Richard Craft
Tours………………………………………………… Joyce Stork
Richard Craft
Tour Guides……………………………………… Vladimir Kalgin
Danny Tidwell
Bingo………………………………………………… Sharon Shannon
Beth Baker
Bobbi Johannsen
Krissa Bruck
Sue Myers
Rich Follett
Auctioneer………………………………………… Linda Hall
Scavenger Hunt………………………………… Joyce Stork
Get-Togethers…………………………………… Sharon Shannon
Beth Baker
Auction……………………………………………… Candace Baldwin
Randy Deutsch
Winston Goretsky
Terri Post
Zoom Master……………………………………. Sharon Shannon
Julie Mavity-Hudson
Society Awards…………………………………. Linda Hall
Welcome Message…………………………….. Sue Ramser
Courtesy Resolution/Lest We Forget.… Jill Jensen
Invitation to Little Rock……………………… Danny Tidwell
Convention T-shirts and Pins…………….. Randy Deutsch
Show Statistics
2021 Cyber Diamond Celebration Convention – Show Statistics
204 Exhibits in the show
- 137 African Violets
- 48 Other Gesneriads
- 17 Designs
- 2 Special Exhibits
Most exhibited plants:
- Rob’s Boolaroo – 6 exhibits
- Ness’ Crinkle Blue – 3 exhibits
54 Exhibitors from 3 Nations
- 1 from Portugal
- 4 from Canada – 3 Provinces represented
- 49 from USA – 23 States represented
Iowa, Minnesota, Texas and Virginia had highest representation with four exhibitors from each state! Thank you!
36 Affiliate Clubs Represented
Congrats to the Tidewater African Violet Society of Virginia, USA for being the affiliate with the highest participation with three exhibitors in the show! Thank you!