History

This is a bare outline of our history. Those interested in fine details can download the full history to read all about Lakeshore African Violet Society of Toronto.

Lakeshore African Violet Society (LAVS for short) was founded in 1970 under first President Sylvia Saalmans with only seven members. By 1972 the Society was holding regular meetings in Lakeshore Community Centre which was its home for the next 24 years. In that year it also held its first show of African violets and 32 people attended. Members had started to appear on the national African violet scene with two members writing columns for Chatter, the magazine of the African Violet Society of Canada.

If you are wondering about the origin of our name, Lakeshore African Violet Society of Toronto, we should point out that three small southwestern suburbs of Toronto (Mimico, New Toronto and Long Branch) are collectively know as the “Lakeshore” and are appropriately strung along the shore of Lake Ontario. In those day, the Lakeshore was the home of most of our members and it was there that we met. These communities are now all part of a much enlarged City of Toronto.

The shows were now taking place annually and in 1975 we hosted our first convention and show of the African Violet Society of Canada. This event is a moveable feast which different societies across the country take turns hosting for all the others.

In 1981, our shows moved to Sherway Gardens, the large local mall, where they were seen by hundreds each year for thirty years. They were certainly the best attended African violet shows in Canada.

The events kept coming, larger and more successful than ever. LAVS celebrated its 25th anniversary in 1995 and in its honour John Brownlie, the best known of our resident hybridizers, released a special semiminiature African violet, ‘Lakeshore Silver’, a lovely plant with pale pink flowers over variegated foliage and still a popular plant today.

We left the Lakeshore Community Centre as a meeting place in 1996. We moved first to the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in western Etobicoke, north of the Lakeshore where we originated. In 2002 we moved onward to St. Philip’s Lutheran Church also in western Etobicoke where we still meet today usually on the second Friday of the month, September through May each year.

The most significant of our recent events was hosting the national Convention of the African Violet Society of Canada (one of many times) in 2010. The Convention theme was “Canadian Gold” marking the 50th anniversary of AVSC.

We relocated the show in 2011 to St. Philip’s Lutheran Church due to scheduled renovation of Sherway Gardens’ centre square. The show continues to be at the church at the present time.