Louisville volunteers redirect 90,000 wedding and funeral flowers to hospice patients

A group of 40 volunteers in Louisville has delivered more than 90,000 vases of flowers since 2006, redirecting blooms that would otherwise be discarded to people facing serious illness or homelessness.

The organization, known as the Flower Buds, meets weekly at Crescent Hill Baptist Church. Volunteers collect donations from weddings, funerals, wholesalers, supermarkets, and other community events. They process the flowers by cutting and cleaning them before arranging the stems into vases.

The group distributes approximately 100 vases every week. Recipients include nursing homes, assisted living facilities, the VA hospital, and local shelters. Jodie Raible, a volunteer, noted that businesses like Kroger often overbuy flowers and allow the group to pick up the unsold inventory.

Stephanie Mullins, who has volunteered for 18 years, delivers flowers to Up for Women and Children, a day shelter for homeless women. She joined the group after retiring, stating she wanted to work with flowers. The group has grown from six or eight original members to its current size of 40.

Clem Russell, a veteran volunteer, focuses his deliveries on the hospice unit at the VA hospital. He said the patients and their families are happy to see the flowers arrive. Russell explained that seeing bright colors helps people in the end stages of life feel cheered up.

Mullins emphasized that the flowers would otherwise end up in the garbage. By arranging them, the volunteers ensure the blooms are put to good use before they wilt. The group continues its weekly routine of collecting, arranging, and delivering these floral arrangements to the community.