Blanche Llewellyn
Blanche was born in North Dakota, but her family soon moved to Spokane, WA where she grew up the second of ten children. As she grew older, she came to discover that having a job as a woman meant one had to remain unmarried, but as fate would have it, she met the love of her life, Philip Marks while at work.
A few years after getting married at the age of 23, she and Philip moved to Stevensville, Montana to start a family. During WWII, she then learned how to drive, so she could take over the mail route six days a week for her husband while he was at war.
Homesteading and raising four children in the Bitterroot Valley, Montana was a rewarding, yet busy adventure with washing, ironing, cooking, dishwashing, farming, tending to animals, and canning left very little time for luxuries. While creative, sweet, and silently strong, Blanche was intentional in creating memorable moments for her family - she was a wonderful cook, and often made special treats and desserts for the kids.
Blanche’s favorite flowers were the bearded iris. She adored dahlias, but unfortunately could never grow them due to the harsh, cold temps and short farming season in Montana.
Beverly Marks
Born on a homestead in Stevensville, Montana as one of four children, Beverly has always been well-natured and the nurturing type. She remembers the family homestead always had a border of pink petunia and begonia along the driveway and house with a thriving vegetable garden and fruit orchard.
She often accompanied her mom in the garden and helped preserve most of their food, and still recalls how her mother smelled and made her feel - a gentle mix of peach, apricot, violet, iris, lily of the valley with the warmth of sandalwood, vanilla and musk – the 1928 Evening in Paris fragrance. The bearded iris and wild violets continue to be some of her favorite flowers.
Grandma Beverly has vivid, yet few core memories with her mother as Blanche battled cancer from the time she was in 2nd to 8th grade, when her mother finally lost the fight.
Preserving tradition and connection, Beverly continued to garden and grow her own food in Oregon and Washington with her husband, Jim Cotter and six children. A woman of many talents, she continues to inspire future generations with her love and passion for all things floral.
Dawn Cotter
Born in Lebanon, Oregon, Dawn and her five siblings grew up with a passion for learning new skills and spending as much time as possible outdoors. Heavily influenced by her mother and grandmother, Dawn is the very embodiment of hard work, talent and creativity.
Her compassionate spirit and drive led her to a rewarding career in Emergency Room Pediatrics, where she balanced the intensity of her profession with the serenity of nature and the richness of cultural exploration through travel. In the Snoqualmie Valley, she crafted her sanctuary, a one-acre haven of over 100 varieties of flora, where her children found inspiration and the freedom to create.
Dawn’s creativity shines brightly in her expert seamstress skills, culinary prowess in the kitchen, DIY expertise, and ability to transform her home gardens into places of peace and tranquility - proving there's nothing she can’t master. Her love of nature and passion for exploring the world has greatly influenced her children, providing them with the space and support to explore their own talents and interests.
