Virginia Nonprofit Spreads Joy by Giving Away Repurposed Flowers

Thought Question: What is something small that has made you feel happier or less stressed, and how could you do the same for someone else?

The Danish author Hans Christian Andersen once said: “Just living is not enough ... one must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower.” Rebecca Shelly and Laura Ruth understand that. So they spend many hours handing out flowers for free.

Their nonprofit is Friendly City Florals. It takes pricey flower bouquets left over from weddings and other big events and freshens them up. Then, it gives the bouquets to assisted living centers, mental health facilities, and other places in the Harrisonburg, Virginia, area. 

“It’s a simple thing to pick out what’s wilted, add some of our own (flowers) if needed, and share the joy one more time,” Ruth told The Washington Post.

Ruth and Shelly launched Friendly City Florals after getting flooded with flowers after the deaths of their fathers. Shelly is a former wedding caterer. It's how she learned about the costly problem of floral waste. She saw hundreds of good bouquets get trashed after a reception.    

The transportation of fresh cut flowers is a $34-billion market.  It creates massive carbon emissions. Flowers are almost solely moved by air instead of ship. And a 2020 survey found that a bouquet of exported flowers that travels by air has a greater impact on the earth than shipping an 8-ounce steak to London from a cow raised on cleared land in Brazil.     

And yet, flowers are more helpful to humans than putting smiles on people’s faces. Many studies have shown that flowers can lower stress. They can quicken healing. They can improve focus and mood, too. Shelly and Ruth believe that these perks should be free to all.  

“If our flowers give one person a few moments of happiness on a (rough) day,” Shelly told the Post, “then it’s all worthwhile.”   

Photo of flower bouquets from Unsplash courtesy of Luna Wang.