Orchid Gems

Kathy Collins: Taking on the Challenge

By: Pam Horter-Moore

Who is a leader? It’s often not the one making the most noise. Sometimes a leader is the person who is approached with a problem or challenge, and picks up the gauntlet while others turn away.

At the OSWP Christmas Party, we saw two of our leaders – Carolyn Bolton and Kathy Collins – presented with the AOS Certificate of Appreciation by Nancy Kline, our AOS representative, for the roles they play within the Society and within the orchid community at large.

Carolyn Bolton has been an integral part of OSWP for many years, and we would not be the organization we are today without her efforts and tireless enthusiasm. Kathy Collins, by comparison, is a relatively new member, having joined in March 2019, but she has made enormous contributions to the Society since then.

Kathy’s thrust into a leadership role happened quickly. She had accepted a request from Val Robey, the former Membership Chairperson, to function as Co-chair. Shortly after, however, Val left the Society and Kathy was suddenly the new Membership Chairperson.

Kathy comments, “Organizations are desperate for leadership. The Orchid Society needed someone, and (being newly retired) I hadn’t filled my plate up yet.”

Besides being Membership Chairperson, Kathy is OSWP Secretary, a natural for her as she was a legal secretary for over thirty years. “I’m accustomed to taking meeting minutes,” she quips.

One of Kathy’s more enjoyable Society activities is the opportunity to help other OSWP members with their exhibits. This has included a number of road trips to Ohio shows where our members continue to make OSWP’s mark in the orchid world in a big way. Kathy enjoys perusing the orchids available for purchase at these shows and has found that “One of the advantages of assisting Carol Panza and Carolyn Bolton with their exhibits is that they know our home growing environment and can give me advice as to what orchids I should add to our collection.”

Once a month, Kathy participates in Pfun at Phipps, where she spent two years entering data about orchid specimens into the Phipps database. “Now that the project is complete, I can touch the plants again,” she adds enthusiastically. “I enjoy my work at Phipps just as I enjoy weeding in my own garden; I find it relaxing.”

Yes, Kathy’s plate is pretty full. But that’s not all.

Although retired, she has contracted with her old employer to work one day a week cleaning out old files in preparation for the law firm’s move from 3 to 2 Gateway Center. “Some of the files are 20, 30, 40 years old,” says Kathy. “I’ve been there on a contract basis since October, and I suspect that I’ll be there another six months.”

And then there is Kathy’s involvement with Stonecroft Ministries, a nondenominational group of women nationwide who work within their communities to serve other women and share the love of God through fellowship and inspirational engagements.

The Beaver Valley group of Stonecroft Ministries provides opportunities to participate in Bible studies and prayer meetings and also hosts a luncheon for the community each month from March through December. Each meeting includes a brief presentation from a local business or organization, and a featured speaker who has a testimony to share. Through Stonecroft, women throughout the community volunteer to provide spiritual support to other women. “These are women coming together who wouldn’t ordinarily know each other.”

Kathy leads the business meeting which is conducted on the first Tuesday of the month, and acts as Chair for the group’s luncheon which is held on the second Tuesday of the month at the Fez in Aliquippa. Kathy shares that, in this role: “I speak before a group of 130 ladies at every luncheon. This is much different from my career, where I might only have to deal with three or four attorneys.”

As preparation for the OSWP Orchid Show heats up, however, Kathy directs most of her attention to OSWP business. “All my friends know that my availability is very limited in March,” Kathy jokes.

Serving multiple roles within OSWP involves Kathy in preparing the supplies and staffing for the Membership table. She also helps with setting up the OSWP exhibit as time allows. “It’s four days dedicated to OSWP. March is all about the show.”

Kathy is assisted by her husband Mike and their 25-year-old son Miles. Mike and Miles help to organize all the new member supplies that are distributed to those who join at the Show. Miles is helpful at the end of the Show when he is put to work breaking down the Show infrastructure and assisting the vendors to carry their remaining inventory out of the facility. In March, OSWP becomes an all-hands-on-deck family activity.

Although Mike keeps a lower profile than Kathy, his enthusiasm for orchids runs high. Four years ago when I interviewed them for Orchid Gems, I learned that she is the orchid procurer, while he is the orchid nurturer. Things haven’t changed, except that they now have 70 orchids instead of 38 in their collection, most of which are kept under lights in the basement.

Back in 2021, Kathy and Mike joked that they didn’t want the orchids to take over the basement. I asked Kathy whether they had succeeded. “I have to limit myself,” Kathy confesses. “I do try to make replacements and no additions. Yes, they’ve almost taken over the basement. We have two larger tables now, a new deep sink, LED lights, and a potting bench that I helped Mike build. By and large, though, he is in charge of orchid maintenance.”

Kathy has a handful of miniature orchids in a terrarium upstairs. One was a Restrepia that outgrew the terrarium and had to join the other orchids downstairs.

When it comes to orchids, Kathy and Mike don’t stray away from those that work best In their environment; they don’t want to have to give an orchid special treatment. There is no need for Kathy to actively procure Phalaenopsis because people, knowing her love of orchids, often gift them to her. However, the Collins collection also includes mini Cats, slippers, and Miltoniopsis, the pansy orchid.

President John Kennedy once gave Hedy Lamar, actress and inventor, some sound advice: “Get involved. That's the secret of life. Try everything. Join everything. Meet everybody.”

Kathy would agree. “I encourage everyone to be as busy or involved as time will allow.”

Making a difference, small or large. That’s leadership. That’s the secret of life.