When Covington’s Mimi Padgett retired, she knew exactly what she wanted to do with her newfound free time: become a Master Gardener.
After all, you can’t go from the chaos of a busy nursing schedule to nothing at all, she said.
So the former home health and hospice nurse applied to the LSU AgCenter training program. And after weeks of classes, 40-some hours of required volunteer work and a final exam, she became just that.
Now, nearly 12 years later, Padgett uses her know-how year-round, volunteering her time and skills at a number of St. Tammany Master Gardener events. Next up? The Northshore Garden and Plant show April 24 and 25 at the St. Tammany Parish Fairgrounds from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day. It’s one of the area’s largest plant sales, with more than 60 garden and art booths.
The annual show will also feature dozens of vendors, educational booths from the Master Gardeners and AgCenter, a children’s area, a cooking demo and a jam-packed line up of experts who will host seminars throughout the day. Entry is $5 for adults and free for children. Food trucks will also be on site.
This year, Padgett will be among the first faces guests see upon arrival, waving in and directing cars with the parking crew.
While this particular volunteer gig doesn’t require any of her hands-on gardening skills, it was where she was needed — and that’s just something Padgett does really well.
She’s not afraid to step into any challenge and is known for volunteering even when no one else is willing, said Julie Deus, an event chair.
In the case of parking, it will be a big job, as the event expects to surpass last year’s head count of more than 3,000 visitors. Padgett is known for her flexibility, she said, and is one of those people the Master Gardeners know they can count on.
In the past, she has done a little bit of everything, including overseeing the show’s children’s area, hosting table talks and even managing the event’s credit card checkouts.
“I know Mimi will go wherever I want her to go,” Deus said of Padgett. “She’s just very flexible and is always willing to help and always has a smile on her face. She’s just great.”
Padgett said she truly enjoys the event: “If you’re a gardener, it’s where you can go and there’s everything. The plant show is absolutely dazzling.”
As for how she got involved, Padgett said volunteering was a way to reacclimate herself to the area after a long stint living in Maine. She grew up in New Orleans, she said, and moved back home to Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina, Padgett said, because her family needed her and it felt like the right move.
“We came back immediately to help, then once we got the lay of the land, I thought I need to come back here,” she said.
Becoming a master gardener felt what she needed to do to make friends and relearn the area.
“I really wanted to learn the community, meet more people and learn more about gardening, so it was a win-win for me,” she said.
Now, she’s dug in deep — sometimes literally — and learning something new at every turn, she said. Even her husband, who she claims is the better gardener, joins her. And when she’s not gardening, she’s busy being grandma to two grandchildren and quilting, her other weekly retirement hobby.
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