In 1996, two landscape designers from the San Francisco Bay Area, Mary Kaye and Li Vellinga, returned home from their first National APLD® Conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico full of resolve to extend their experiences by holding monthly meetings with other local designers. The early venue, Karin Nelson’s living room, was outgrown by 1998, and the members were thrilled to find a meeting room to rent at St. Marks Episcopal Church. Then in 2002, observing the synergy between their two organizations, Palo Alto’s Gamble Garden Center generously offered to host these meetings in their beautifully restored Carriage House.
Inspired by the formation of the Washington State Chapter, work began in 2000 on the formation of the country’s second formal APLD Chapter. While briefly called the San Francisco Bay Area Chapter, we became the California Chapter in 2002. The San Francisco Bay Area became the Chapter’s first District.
In subsequent years, Chapter membership has steadily grown, and the California Chapter now comprises four local districts:
These districts were created through the efforts of members who share the vision of our original founders—to provide regionally accessible educational and networking opportunities to California APLD members.
California Chapter
The California Chapter Board coordinates with local Districts to publish the our newsletter, web site, and other chapter-wide communications. The Board also maintains membership records, serves as a liaison between the Districts and the international APLD organization, and helps facilitate programs for the benefit of California Chapter members.
Contact the APLD California Chapter here
Past Presidents of the California Chapter
From 1996 to 2001, the APLD in California was led by regional reps. Starting in 2001, those regional districts were incorporated into a single APLD California Chapter, led by our first official President, the late Debby Ruskin. Below is a chronological list of APLD-CA leadership.
| YEAR | NO. | PRESIDENT |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Mary Kaye and Li Vellinga | |
| 1996 | Wil Jonson, APLD | |
| 1997 | Karin Nelson | |
| 1998 | Mary Kaye, APLD | |
| 1999–2001 | Kathleen Craig, APLD | |
| 2001–2004 | 1 | Debby Ruskin, APLD |
| 2005 | 2 | Deanna Glory, APLD |
| 2006 | 3 | Shelley Somersett, APLD |
| 2007 | 4 | Janet Bell, APLD |
| 2008 | 5 | Colleen Hamilton |
| 2009 | 6 | Maureen Decombe |
| 2010 | 7 | Joni Wilson, APLD |
| 2011 | 8 | Janet Enright |
| 2012 | 9 | Laura Morton, FAPLD |
| 2013 | 10 | Pamela Berstler |
| 2014 | 11 | Amelia Lima, FAPLD |
| 2015–2016 | 12 | Mary Fisher, CPLD, FAPLD |
| 2017 | 13 | Linda Middleton |
| 2018–2020 | 14 | Francesca Corra, CPLD |
| 2021–2023 | 15 | Martin Carrion van Rijn |
Remembering Debby Ruskin
As most of you know our beloved Debby Ruskin died March 28, 2020. Debby, founder of Ruskin Garden Design, for over 35 years created beautiful residential landscape designs in the Palo Alto area of California. Over time she partnered with her daughter Amy Palmer.
Debby was an integral leader in the formation of our California Chapter. Initially the early stages of APLD did not think formation of chapters was a good idea. However California kept pushing and knew that the time was right. We had a dedicated, active design group and we had successfully put on the Winter 1999 APLD conference, centered in San Francisco—with over 100 people attending not only from California but other states as well. California became an official chapter in 2001.
After our separate regional districts were incorporated into a single statewide California Chapter, Debby became our first official APLD CA president, serving from 2001 to 2004. We had moved from meeting in living rooms to a church hall, and with her presidency we moved our meetings to Palo Alto’s Gamble Garden and our numbers mushroomed. It was Debby’s spirit that infused our group: her inclusiveness, her mentoring us younger designers, her enthusiasm for her work and her way of collaborating with others was contagious and spread throughout the local landscape design community. APLD, in the SF Bay Area grew and grew and we all credit Debby for that growth. Read the full article…
