Each year the Biology Department at A-B Tech hosts the Gnilka Memorial Plant Sale in honor of their colleagues, Sarah and Arnie Gnilka. The proceeds go directly into the Gnilka Scholarship, which provides funding to students majoring in Biology.
This year was the be the 15th annual event. Biology faculty plant seeds in the campus greenhouse in February to start their growth for the sale at the end of April. Thanks to a partnership with the ASAP Tailgate market, the sale was able to add $2,170 to the scholarship fund.
“We began preparing for the sale as scheduled with the assistance of two Federal Work-Study students,” said Biology Instructor Joe Allowas. “Then, in March, chaos struck. The school was to be closed. ‘What about all my babies?’ It was touch and go for several weeks, but I was eventually given clearance as a critical employee to maintain the greenhouse.”
Since that time, Allowas has been running solo and transplanting as many plants as he possibly could. “As I worked, I thought often about Sara and Arnie and that kept me motivated. The next hurdle was figuring out how actually get the plants to our faculty, staff, and others. So when I heard about the COVID-19 approved ASAP Tailgate market happening right on campus, it seemed logical to reach out to the coordinator about doing the sale there.”
Interested parties can still donate to the scholarship fund.