Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country
Founded 05-05-05
May 15, 2008 issue
Dr. Ronald Stanley Wins DAR’s National Conservation Award
Award is the First Ever in Chapter’s History
Story by David Brewer
On Tuesday, May 13, members of the Daniel Boone Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution presented Dr. Ronald Stanley with the NSDAR Conservation Award at a ceremony at the Golden Corral restaurant in Boone. The award is the first ever such honor bestowed by the 42-year-old chapter.
Daniel Boone Chapter Chaplain Judy Shepherd and Chapter Regent Anne Millsaps presented the award to Stanley and read a letter from DAR National Chair Elizabeth Hotchkiss.
“Over the years, [Stanley] has willingly share his knowledge and expertise with school children, teachers, parents, neighbors and patients all the while stressing the importance of using sound beautification and conservation practices in any project,” Hotchkiss said in her letter.
A local resident since 1976, Stanley’s love of gardening began at age six, when his grandmother gave him a small corner of her garden. With the exception of a few years during his undergraduate studies at Duke University, Stanley has always had a patch of earth to tend to. Upon moving to Boone, Stanley began taking on larger garden projects aside from his personal plot.
In 1984, Stanley’s vegetable garden was chosen as one of six finalists to be featured on the PBS show The Victory Garden. In addition, several local and regional newspapers printed pictures and articles about the garden following its national television exposure.
From 1981 to 1993, a group of three and four-year-olds from ASU’s Lucy Brock Child Development Center visited Stanley’s garden each October. Introduced to the children annually as “Farmer Stanley”, the dermatologist would show the children around the garden and introduce them to vegetable gardening through a hands-on approach. The kids helped Farmer Stanley dig potatoes, pull carrots and harvest pumpkins.
Stanley was also instrumental in the formation of the after-school gardening club at Hardin Park Elementary School in Boone. He aided the students in designing, installing and planting four raised vegetable and flower plots, as well as planting several fruit trees.
Stanley maintains five acres of landscaped gardens surrounding his home in Boone, where he has grown and evaluated 5,000 different varieties of perennials, shrubs, trees, evergreens, bulb and annuals. Stanley maintains detailed records of each and shares info with others through lectures and slide shows at civic organizations, garden clubs and churches. Stanley also continues to give numerous tours of his prize-winning garden and helps homeowners with landscaping issues by visiting sites, answering questions, designing plots and drawing up landscape plans.
In addition to his home plot, Stanley voluntarily maintains landscapes that he designed and installed at Hardin Park Elementary, Watauga High School and First Presbyterian Church. Stanley donated all the plants and supplies for each garden.
In addition to the DAR National Conservation Award, Stanley is the recipient of the NC Governor’s Award for Volunteer Work, the Town of Boone’s Reynolds Award for Town Beautification, the Boone Chamber of Commerce’s Beautification Award, the Farm City Award for Landscape Beautification and the Hardin Park Elementary School PTA’s Grounds Landscape Beautification Award. For the last five years, Stanley has been the recipient of Business North Carolina’s award for the Best Doctors in North Carolina.
Stanley is employed locally at Boone Dermatology Clinic. He and his wife Cheryl have been married for 38 years. They have three children and two grandchildren.