Proclamation: May 31, 2023 is "Carl Wickstrom Day" in the Town of Berlin, MA

Carl Wickstrom Day -- May 31, 2023

WHEREAS Carl Wickstrom has served upon the Berlin Agriculture Commission since its inception in 2006 and was instrumental in the creation of the beloved Berlin Community Garden at Riverbridge on River Road West, and the institution of Berlin’s Right to Farm Community status;

WHEREAS Carl Wickstrom has overseen several procurement projects for the Community Garden, including the installation of a solar-powered water pump and storage system since upgraded to an artesian well and pump and electrical service, a new rototiller, and soon the installation of a new protective fence surrounding the garden plots;

WHEREAS Carl Wickstrom and his wife Elaine established themselves as superior cultivators of perennial plants at their Golden Skep Farm, a 1740 vintage farmhouse located here on Linden Street;

WHEREAS in March 2019, Yankee Magazine named Golden Skep Farm as One of the Five Best Flower Farms in New England with specific kudos for the Wickstrom’s:

--> Galaxy of seldom-found plants

--> A dozen heathers

--> 2,000 varieties of daylilies

--> Intriguing aquatics and succulents

--> 400-500 varieties of hosta

--> Nocturnal bloomers, peculiar herbs

WHEREAS in Spring 2020, Worcester Living Magazine proclaimed that the Golden Skep Farm is a flower festival worthy of high praise;

WHEREAS in July 2021, Ted Reinstein, a revered reporter for WCVB-TV’s award-winning television show Chronicle, called Golden Skep Farm a “pastoral oasis since 2000 for people, birds, and bees”;

WHEREAS Carl Wickstrom and his wife, Elaine, have both served on the Berlin Historical Commission and greatly assisted with the ongoing renovation efforts of the Bullard House on Woodward Avenue. Carl in particular having led several procurement pieces of said project; and;

WHEREAS Carl Wickstrom has opted to retire from the Agriculture Commission in order to focus his efforts on his farm which opened for its 24th season on May 1st;

NOW, THEREFORE we, the members of the Berlin Select Board, on this 22nd day of May 2023, do hereby proclaim May 31, 2023, as:

CARL WICKSTROM DAY

Christine Keefe, Margaret Stone, R. Scott Hawkins