Tucked into a church basement is one of Unexpected Blooms' workspaces, where volunteers sort through buckets of donated flowers to then cut, trim and arrange them into dozens of bouquets.
The hundreds of flowers left over from events like weddings or funerals could have been destined for the trash, but they're finding a new life brightening the rooms of seniors living in health care facilities around the Kansas City area — and now also supporting the next generation of florists.
AJ Miller is the board chair for Unexpected Blooms and has been volunteering with the nonprofit for about eight years. She said it's important to bring joy to individuals who can oftentimes feel isolated.
"Maybe they have a loved one that will visit them in a care facility. Maybe they don't," Miller said. "So when we bring flowers to their community, some of them, it might be the only personal touch that they received all month."
A retired funeral director and florist started the organization in 2016, inspired by the waste they saw in both industries. They also had a loved one living in a nursing home, and saw the smiles they brought whenever they visited with flowers, Miller said. Miller said they were able to combine both those ideas into Unexpected Blooms.
The organization has grown since its start in someone's basement and garage. It eventually moved into a floral design event space in 2018, but lost momentum during the COVID-19 pandemic when events shut down and donations came to a standstill.
The organization now has two workshop facilities at Ward Parkway Presbyterian Church and Village Church on Antioch and 65 monthly volunteers who help pick up donations, wash vases, arrange flowers and deliver bouquets to local senior facilities.
The organization also has reached a level that it's able to support a new generation of florists.
This is the second year that Unexpected Blooms is funding scholarships for the floral design certificate program at Johnson County Community College in Overland Park, Kansas. There were six scholarship recipients this school year.
"We were able to, in the last four years, really build up the revenue stream so that from donations and wonderful people from the classes that have been learning how to arrange bouquets, and ultimately give us enough stability that we can give back in even a bigger way," Miller said.
It's not the first time the floral design program has partnered with Unexpected Blooms. The nonprofit donates flowers from its fundraising galas, and an instructor leads flower arranging classes to raise money for the organization.
Natalie Goodwin, the program's lead instructor, also allows her students to volunteer at Unexpected Blooms for extra credit. She said whether students are on the pickup, design or delivery team, they get to see the impact flowers have on people.
"Flowers make everybody feel better. I mean, it's scientifically proven that even people who have flowers on their desk at work are more productive," Goodwin said. "People who have flowers in their home, their families are more positive and more cheerful."
The floral design program at Johnson County Community College is believed to be the only of its kind in Kansas and the Kansas City area. It's been around for about 20 years, but Goodwin said its popularity has grown over the past five years.
Goodwin said her classes are always full and so are the waitlists to get in. The program combines marketing, accounting and design classes so students are prepared for a range of careers in the floral industry, such as buying, wholesales or working in a nursery or cruise ship.
At first, Goodwin said, students have to learn the basics and focus on duplicating what she makes before developing their individual style.
"They learn the principles and the elements, things like balance and proportion, unity, harmony, what things go together, what flowers are in what season, and how they come packed, when you buy them," Goodwin said. "They learn … just to have that artistic eye."
Goodwin said half of her students are already working in flower shops and nearly all are employed in the industry by the time they complete the program. But she said money is tight for many students, and the Unexpected Blooms scholarship helps students who may otherwise struggle to pay for schooling.
Sophie Ahrens is one of this year's scholarship recipients and already works with flowers in her job at Hy-Vee. She originally worked there as a clerk, but was inspired to transfer to the floral department after volunteering to help with Valentine's Day arrangements.
"It's definitely a labor of love and creating something that expresses emotions that are sometimes hard to say with words," Ahrens said. "It's wonderful to work with natural material. I think that adds such another layer to it, is being able to work with plants and flowers that are pretty."
Ahrens said the scholarship has allowed her to focus on her studies instead of taking only one class a semester. She said the floral design program has been "life-changing" for her, and students praise the classes as having a healthy level of competition while still leaving room for collaboration.
Students are also learning lessons that go beyond florals. Ryan Bardot, another scholarship recipient, ended up in the design program after leaving art school in California because of finances and life circumstances.
Working with florals was a way to stay creative and design with color, said Bardot, who hopes next year's scholarship recipients have the same experience.
"I've found that this program definitely helped me in a lot of ways. … Things change, things evolve, and you physically see your growth through your designs," Bardot said. "I'm really appreciative for the program for that, because otherwise I probably wouldn't have known that I'm probably stronger than I think I am."
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