Dusty McGuire, local philanthropist, learn gardener and initial organizer of “Maintain Amarillo Stunning,” left powering a legacy of town beautification just after her passing previously this calendar year.
All over her lifestyle, McGuire had been a longtime leader in the energy to beautify the city through recycling and encouraging Amarillo citizens to manage and beautify their houses.
“She was a real visionary, her want to enhance our metropolis and our natural environment was actually in advance of its time,” mentioned Anne Amerson, previous general public relations consultant and mate of Dusty McGuire. “Her legacy that really does are living on in addition to the memories that she developed and the lives she touched, is her instilling in persons the strategy of caring about their ecosystem and caring about turning into a lot more ecologically welcoming,”
From 1990 to 2015, McGuire served on the Chamber Civic Beautification Committee, in advance of McGuire was concerned in the “You should not Mess With Texas” marketing campaign that she later localized in 1989 and founded “Hold Amarillo Gorgeous” a marketing campaign to beautify the metropolis by way of character and artwork.
New Japanese backyard unveiled at Amarillo Botanical Gardens
By “Retain Amarillo Stunning” McGuire prepared the city large Recycling Days, and founded chipper shredder cites twice a year from 1995 to 2010 as an hard work to thoroughly clean up our metropolis, and teach individuals to develop into far more environmentally responsible.
“She was a learn gardener… she had a program, in the tumble, named ‘Don’t Bag It’ where she encouraged persons when they rake their leaves, to not toss them absent. She taught folks how to get started a mulch or compost pile and maintain them to use as a topsoil in your backyard to preserve the h2o simply because we live in such a drought prone area,” said Amerson.
In 1993, McGuire was acknowledged as the Amarillo Globe-Information Lady of the year for her contributions to the metropolis, neighborhood, atmosphere and commitment to beautification.
McGuire also coordinated the Evenings and Lights in the Park per year all through Xmas from 2000 to 2010. It was held at John Rigid Memorial Park as a element of her mission.
The “Preserve Amarillo Wonderful” founder advocated for the senior plan in Elwood Park and was equipped to have park benches, strolling places and workout products mounted in the park for seniors to use as properly as many tree plantings.
McGuire generally organized tree plantings and other vegetation installments all over the town as a component of her exertion to beautify Amarillo.
The beatification activist labored with city leaders to make improvements to our metropolis parks and educate little ones about the benefit of recycling and composting to reduce waste.
“I think most importantly she did a lot of educating, and she had a lot of instructional materials that she handed out to young ones and truly every person… I think her affect from the academic benefit that she shared was her finest achievements,” said Greg Lusk, Govt Director for Amarillo Botanical Gardens.
Throughout her everyday living, McGuire was a extended-time contributor to the Amarillo Botanical Gardens, and it was her really like for Oriental-design gardening and décor that led to her donation of a Japanese Backyard to the Amarillo Botanical Gardens in 2018.
“She was always on the information all the time she was a significant advocate for beautification of the town, so I always noticed her at a park or speaking about recycling as a component of “Maintain Amarillo Stunning”… she genuinely considered that it was essential to choose action to make your environment a better place for the community,” stated Lusk.
As beforehand claimed by the Globe-Information, the Japanese back garden, donated by the Dick and Dusty McGuire Believe in for an undisclosed sum, was similar to the 1 situated in the yard of the couples’ house.
It was made and planted by Billy Krause, operator of Krause Landscape Contractors, and longtime friend of McGuire West Texas Roofing furnished the roofing supplies and Ted Lemasters offered the now iconic red hue seen through the donated yard. Some goods had been in the initial Japanese Garden and gifted to the McGuire backyard by Don Reid. McGuire’s Japanese Garden incorporates a tea household, two torii gates, rock waterfalls, a recirculating pond with koi and goldfish, many statues and natural vegetation.
McGuire died at her home, Jan. 28 2021. In her passing she followed her husband Dick McGuire who had handed in 2002. The pair leaves driving no youngsters other than people folks whose life have been touched during the years.
“Her philanthropic spirit will live on as a result of her several passions and assistance during the Amarillo spot.” explained Lusk. “I think her concept just assists us to realize that we share this city and we are all a section of it, and we need to have to leave it a superior spot and make it a greater area for each individual other and ourselves,”
