The mission of the Rhododendron Court program is to provide scholarships for higher education, to promote community outreach, volunteerism and to foster personal development. Wednesday, May 20, 1908, was Florence’s most memorable day. It was the day of its first Rhododendron Festival and Queen Rhododendra, Laura Johnson, was crowned by Joaquin Miller, poet of the Sierras, who as her prime minister
delivered a 1600 word address devoted largely to the history of the rhododendron and the part beauty plays in civilization. Streets were decorated in evergreen and arches of the honored blooms. The keys of the city presented to the queen by Mayor George P. Edwards, deceased in 1944, were made of rhodo wood and suitably inscribed. A floral decked barge housed the queen and her court, who were the Misses Flossie Chapman, Dena Schreuder, Hazel Weatherson, Ella Wilson, Ethel Munroe,
Today, we carry on this tradition, and the Rhododendron Festival Coronation is the official kick off for the annual Rhododendron Festival.
