Issue link: https://nest.uberflip.com/i/627513
fanciful dream, but a notion that could become reality. After two years of intense preparation and modeling after successful shows such as Philadelphia and New England (with a combined history of almost 300 years) and the Royal Horticultural Society's Chelsea Flower Show (which is more than 140 years old), the Northwest Flower & Garden Show debuted in 1989 to lines stretching down Pike Street. "We were thrilled when we saw how many people showed up," Kelly said, "but after ten minutes we panicked, realizing we had no idea how to handle such large crowds." Since that morning, the show has become a highly anticipated annual event drawing gardeners from around the United States and Canada. And the family enterprise, which grew to include children Celice and Cyle, went on to solve countless logistical problems. It's no wonder then that Kelly, a theater aficionado, soon recognized how a garden show was akin to a theater experience that simultaneously delights, confounds, inspires, and entertains. Each area of the show could be categorized as an act with each specifically serving a purpose to the overall play. Kelly called it his "three-legged stool" composed of inspirational show gardens, a tempting garden marketplace, and a seminar program second to none and free to all attendees. It's a successful formula that catapulted the show to become the second largest garden