Annual Holiday Brunch & State of the Phoebes Meeting
Sunday December 4, 2022 • Home of Kirsten Hines • Report by Kirsten Hines • Images Courtesy of Ana Lima and Jim Kushlan
Quiches, pastries, fruit, and more quickly filled not just one but three tables as thirty plus women gathered for the first in-person Annual Holiday Brunch and State of the Phoebes Meeting post-pandemic, in the very same garden where Phoebes Birding was conceived five years ago. How has that inspired dream blossomed? In 2022, the Phoebes gathered at ten separate events starting with a frosty January morning visit to a Rufous Hummingbird in Kendale Lakes Park and capped by explorations of bird-friendly gardens at a High Tea hosted by Gloria Turkel in November and our annual meeting in December hosted by Kirsten Hines.
Where is this inspired Phoebes dream headed? 2023 will start off with an Everglades National Park camping trip, followed by a shorebird excursion to Crandon Park, and on to possible adventures in Wakodahatchee Wetlands, Johnathon Dickinson State Park, a paddle in Key Largo, or any number of other great suggestions shared at the meeting.
As formal business adjourned, delicious food, mimosas, coquitas, assorted other cocktails, and friendship abounded among faces familiar and new. Some Phoebes chatted in the shade as Ruby-Throated Hummingbirds zipped between the feeders and flowers around them, others watched Button Quail scurry around the aviary floor, some patted the gregarious Aldabra tortoise, and many joined Kirsten on an informal tour of the wildlife-friendly garden she and Attracting Birds to South Florida Gardens co-author James Kushlan created as a demonstration of how their book’s principles might be applied. As if to exemplify the garden’s allure, a mixed flock of Northern Parula, American Redstart, Palm Warbler, White-eyed Vireo, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, and more descended into the trees just as the group strolled below the lush canopy.
Some women continued birding the garden while others joined Kirsten in the century-old Dade County pine and limestone cottage that houses her studio gallery to hear her stories about the nature photography on display. Ladies swirled between indoor and outdoor spaces, their numbers slowly dwindling until only a few remained communing among birds in both the aviary and garden.
What is the State of the Phoebes? If the meeting and brunch were any indication, the group’s goal of connecting women through nature has not only been met but continues to flourish. Many thanks to everyone who has helped us accomplish this mission through the years, and especially to those of you who brought such marvelous treats and fellowship to our 2022 State of the Phoebes brunch! We look forward to celebrating many more holidays with you in years to come.
