Four-O'Clock Flowers Around
the World Cancer Memorial
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Four-O'Clock Flowers Around
the World Cancer Memorial
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Marilyn
McAfee, U.S. Ambassador, Guatemala City, Guatemala
Thank you for your recent letter. I was interested and moved to learn
of the Four-o’clocks Across America 
tribute
you are carrying out in honor of your late father, Jim Donahoe. It is clear
that he was a man who cared deeply not just about his garden, but also about
his family, friends and community. I cannot think of a more appropriate way
of remembering Jim Donahoe than by sharing his beautiful four-o’clock plants
with people throughout the United States and the world.
Guatemala is often known as “The land of eternal springtime,” and people here cherish and care for many kinds of beautiful flowering plants. In response to your request, we will be pleased to plant one pack of seeds at the U.S. Ambassador’s Residence in Guatemala City, in a garden that often serves as a backdrop for events bringing Americans and Guatemalans together. We will offer the other pack of seeds to the Rector of the Universidad del Valle de Guatemala, and ask that they be planted in a suitable location on the attractive campus of that institution. The university educates young Guatemalans in the arts and sciences, and has noteworthy programs in such areas as agriculture, botany, and environmental studies.
Please accept my thanks and good wishes for success in your fine tribute to your father.
Raymond
E. Mabus, Jr., U.S. Ambassador, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
The Embassy has participated in the tribute honoring your father,
Jim Donahoe, by planting the four-o’clock seeds in the flower bed at the front
entrance of the chancery. Although the harsh desert climate is not kind to flowering
plants, in that location the seeds will receive the nurturing and care they
merit. As you requests, I have also presented one of the seed packets to a Saudi
citizen so it can be planted in an appropriate location in the Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia.
Of course, the time and energy you have devoted to pursuing this memorial to your father is the most significant tribute, far surpassing the Embassy’s small task of planting the seeds. You are an inspiration to all of us by moving beyond your grief to formulate a project which provides funds for research and critical care in the fight against cancer.
The members of the Embassy community share your wish that people will not have to battle this disease. Thank you for including the Embassy in your efforts to honor all those persons who have been affected by cancer.
Thomas
R. Pickering, U.S. Ambassador, Moscow, Russia
Thank you for writing such a nice letter in honor of your father.
My father too died of cancer in 1987. It will be an honor to plant your seeds
here in Moscow and we will do so. We have some excellent possibilities on the
grounds of Spaso House, the historic residences of the American Ambassador to
Russia. I will enclosed in my letter a brief description of the house and its
grounds so you will know where we will do so.
I will also look for Russian friends who might wish to plant seeds. In the meantime, thank you for writing, warm regards and good wishes.
Christopher
M. O’Connor, Assistant to the U.S. Ambassador, Ottawa, Canada
Thank you for your recent letter to the Ambassador containing the
four-o’clock seeds in memory of your father. The Ambassador has resigned his
position, so I am responding in his absence.
First, let me sat that I think your idea is wonderful. I have sent one packet of the seeds to the staff of the Ambassador’s Residence to plant. and have forwarded the second packet to the Mayor of Ottawa.
Spring still hasn’t arrived in Ottawa, but I expect the soil to warm in the next couple of weeks. I expect the four-o’clocks will thrive here, and we will harvest seeds for replanting in subsequent years. Your dad would be very pleased.
Jean
Kennedy Smith, U.S. Ambassador, Dublin, Ireland
Thank you for your letter. We are pleased to be able to take part
in the tribute you have arranged for your father. I think the idea of planting
his favorite four-o’clocks across the United States and around the world is
a wonderful one, and we will be delighted to have the seeds you sent planted
here in Ireland. Good luck with your ambitious project. I know your father will
continue to be remembered by everyone who enjoys your plants.
Michael
C. Polt, Charge’ d’Affaires, Bern, Switzerland
Your inspirational letter about your efforts to honor your dad’s
memory and the fight against cancer moved me greatly. Our Ambassador, M. Larry
Lawrence, to whom you addressed your letter, passed away himself in January
after a long illness; but I know he too would have encouraged and supported
your effort.
I will now plant one packet of four-o’clocks at the Ambassador’s Residence myself and you will receive a photo of the planting in a few weeks. I am enclosing in this letter a history of the Residence. As you can see from the description of the garden, you’re dad’s four-o’clocks will be in very good company.
We have also found an appropriate spot for the second packet of seeds. The President of the Swiss-American Society, Reverend Thomas Norton, has agreed to plant them at his church, the Evangelische-Reformierte Kirche in Ostermundigen, a suburb of Bern. Reverent Norton is American-born and trained, moved to Switzerland with his Swiss wife, who he met while in Divinity School, and has been preaching here in German since then. He helps with the ecumenical English-language Thanksgiving Service each year. I will send a photo of the planting of the church as well.
I wish you well in your continuing tribute to your father’s memory.
Ralph
R. Johnson, U.S. Ambassador, Bratislava
I would be happy to plant the four-o’clock seeds in Bratislava in
honor of your father.
Because our embassy is in the heart of downtown Bratislava, we have no garden space there. However, the official American Residence, located on a hill overlooking the Danube River and the woods which lead into Austria, has a very nice garden. So we will plant the seeds there in the next week. We will also be pleased to share the other packet with a Slovak employee of the embassy who has a garden adjacent to his house outside of Bratislava.
I am particularly pleased to know that these flowers are being planted in honor of all persons who have been affected by cancer. My own father died of cancer six years ago, and my wife has spent many years working with cancer patients in a Virginia hospice program.
We are looking forward to seeing the seeds blossom and bloom.
Alfred
H. Moses, U.S. Ambassador, Bucharest, Romania
I want you to know that we have planted the four-o’clock seeds in
the garden at the American Embassy in Bucharest in memory of your father. When
the plants bloom, I shall send you pictures so that you can see for yourself
the pleasure of the beauty that your father’s memory will have brought to Romania.
Edward
E. Elson, U.S. Ambassador, Copenhagen, Denmark
I was taken by the tribute which you are encouraging to honor the
memory of your late father. Having lost my father, and Mrs. Elson both her mother
and dad, I know full well the interest you have in honoring the life of a departed
parent. It gave me great solace to do similarly for our parents.
We are planting the four-o’clock seeds in the garden of the Residence of the Embassy, and I look forward, with excitement and anticipation, to seeing them bloom. Please know that they will be forever a reminder of your father’s great humanity and your interest in perpetuating your concern for all who occupy the Residence of the Ambassador of the United States of America to the Kingdom of Denmark.
Jeffrey
D. Levine, First Secretary Administrative Affairs, Cyprus
The American Embassy in Cyprus will take great pleasure in plants
the seeds you enclosed and participating the worldwide tribute to your father.
In
addition, the Fulbright Commission in Cyprus is currently planning to establish
a garden in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Fulbright program and to recognize
ongoing exchanges between Cyprus and the United States. I will donate the second
packet of seeds to this project.
Thank you for including the Embassy in your tribute. I am certain your father would be very proud.
Jeanette
W. Hyde, U.S. Ambassador, Bridgetown, Barbados
I have received the four-o’clock seeds in today’s mail and I write
to assure you that I am most pleased to share your wonderful tribute to your
father. I fully understand your desire to do this as I lost my own father in
1984.
I want you to know that I have the perfect place on the beautiful grounds of the Ambassador’s Official Residence here in Barbados. The seeds will be planted late this afternoon with a little ceremony in memory of your Dad. The other seeds will be given to a gardener friend of mine.
Please note that this Embassy and I are accredited to six other countries of the Eastern Caribbean. They are Antigua, Dominica, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, St. Kitts, and Nevis and Grenada. My warmest best wishes.
Lannon
Walker, U.S. Ambassador, Abidjan
I would like to thank you for sending us the four-o’clock seeds,
and for sharing with us your continued and devoted love for your late father.
My wife, who is a born-horticulturist with a remarkable green-thumb, has already selected a spot in our garden to plant the seeds. The seeds should thrive in Abidjan, which has a similar climate to Metairie.
J.
Brady Anderson, U.S. Ambassador, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
I was very touched to receive your letter and the four-o’clock plant
seeds you sent with it. We are very happy to plant these seeds in the American
Embassy garden, and I will personally enjoy watching them grow and looking forward
to their four-o’clock flowers. Dar es Salaam’s climate is hot an humid, not
unlike Louisiana, so I hope the plants like the weather here and flourish.
Thank you for sharing your family’s story with us and all of the best to you in your endeavors.
Mary
Ann Casey, U.S. Ambassador, Tunis, Tunisia
Thank you very much for sharing with us your “Four-o’clocks Around
the World” project. We are, of course, please to participate. I am enlisting
the support of our horticultural experts at the American Monuments Battle Monuments
Cemetery here in Tunisia in order to assure that the seeds are properly germinated.
(A number of Americans lost their lives in North Africa during the World War
II effort to liberate the region. The American Battle Monuments Commission maintains
the Carthage cemetery as a monument to their sacrifice.) The four-o’clock seedlings
will be planted at the American Embassy Residence and on the Monument grounds
where Americans and Tunisians alike will be able to enjoy them once they mature
into plants. Thank you for including us in your project.
Richard
W. Mueller, Consul General, Hong Kong
Thank you for your letter which enclosed two packets of four-o’clock
plant seeds. I will be very pleased to plant these seeds, in memory of your
father, Jim, on the grounds of the Consulate General office building in central
Hong Kong, and also up at the U.S. Consul General’s residence on The Peak.
We are in the midst of a major office renovation project which will not be completed until the spring; we, therefore, would not plan to plant the four-o’clocks until the flower beds at our office complex are somewhat established (right now there is construction equipment and material all over the lot.)
Is it possible to transplant four-o’clocks from a seedbed? If you have any instructions for the planting/transplanting and care of these plants, I would welcome them; we might might then get the seeds started in a garden shed and transplant them to permanent beds when our construction is completed. I look forward to your advice.
Josiah
H. Beeman, U.S. Ambassador, Wellington
Thank you very much for your letter. I have instructed the gardener
at my residence to plant the four-o’clock seeds in our garden. The garden is
the only remaining part of a very historical botanical garden, and thus it will
be a special place in which to honor the memory of your father. We have a number
of charity events in the garden during the course of the year and I am sure
that the addition of the plants from the seeds you provided will make these
events even more special for those who attend them.
Bismark
Myrick, U.S. Ambassador, Kingdom of Lesotho
I am in receipt of your letter and was deeply touched by your conviction
to plant the seeds of four-o’clocks around the world in honor of your father.
I will gladly plant the seeds on the Embassy grounds and at the Ambassador’s
Residence in the Kingdom of Lesotho. I can assure you that American citizens
in Lesotho as well as our many Lesotho friends will enjoy the beauty of four-o’clocks.
Irvin
Hicks, U.S. Ambassador, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Thank you for your letter regarding your father, Jim, and his love
of four-o’clock plants, and your request that we plant some of the seeds you
sent here in Ethiopia.
My residence is located on the American Embassy compound and I have a rather extensive yard and garden. My gardener has planted some of the seeds in this garden. The second package of seeds has been given to an Ethiopian colleague of mine who loves gardening. He has also planted the seeds in his garden. You are paying a great tribute to your father and I am pleased to have helped you in this endeavor.
David
M. Ransom, U.S. Ambassador, Manama, Bahrain
Thank you for your touching letter regarding the planting of four-o’clock
seeds in memory of your father and those people battling cancer. I will be happy
to see that the seeds are planted on the grounds of our Embassy here in Bahrain.
Robert
A. Farmer, U.S. Consul General, Hamilton, Bermuda
I have received your letter in which you enclosed seeds of the four-o’clock
plant with the request that they be planted here in Bermuda in memory of your
father. Your request is both poignant and fascinating. Considering the success
which you have met, I must add that you seem to have touched a deep chord in
many people.
I can assure you that the seeds of the four-o’clock will be planted at the official residence of the United States Consulate General in Bermuda. That property, Chelston, is a lovely home situation on fourteen acres of gardens and beachfront maintained by professional gardeners. Without doubt the four-o’clocks will add additional beauty to the grounds.
Thank you for your thoughtfulness. May your mission to establish a memorial to your father and other cancer sufferers worldwide be successful.
Theresa
A. Tull, U.S. Ambassador, Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei
I have received your letter and am touched by your original tribute
to your father. We will plant the four-o’clocks in the Embassy Residence garden
and will find a suitable home as well for the other seed packet with Bruneian
friends. It is extremely hot here and North American flowers don’t fare too
well, but perhaps the four-o’clocks will prove an exception.
Seeing these seeds brought back fond memories. As a little girl in Runnemede, New Jersey, I frequently planted these lovely little flowers beside our front steps. I was so proud when my flowers grew and bloomed.
Peter
Jon de Vos, U.S. Ambassador, San Jose, Costa Rica
I wish to acknowledge your recent letter, and to inform you that
the four-o’clock seeds have been planted as a tribute to your father. Your timing
was excellent in that we are in the middle of the Costa Rican summer and the
flowers are plentiful. Four-o’clocks have always ranked among my favorites.
Please accept my condolences on the loss of your father. It is gratifying that he is to be remembered in such a wonderful fashion.
Leslie
M. Alexander, U.S. Ambassador, Port Louis, Mauritus
I am very pleased to be able to participate in your wonderful tribute
to your father by having his four-o’clock seeds planted in Mauritius. Since
the Embassy itself occupies only one floor of a high-rise building, the seeds
will be planted at the Ambassador’s residence where they will be enjoyed by
visitors for years to come. The other package of seeds will be given to Mauritian
employees of the Embassy to plant at their homes around the island. I am very
moved by your letter and join you in your hope that a cure for cancer will soon
be found.
Robert
E. Gribbin, U.S. Ambassador, Kigali, Rwanda
Your letter with seeds in it (sent to Bangui) tracked me down in
Kigali, Rwanda where I am now Ambassador. We have planted the seeds in our garden
to honor your father and other victims of cancer and given the second packet
to Rwandan friends. Flowers usually do well in this beautiful climate. Best
wishes with your project.
Gregory
L. Johnson, Deputy Chief of Mission, Stockholm, Sweden
On behalf of Ambassador Siebert and the staff of our Embassy, I am
pleased to tell you that the packets of four-o’clock seeds will be planted in
our Chancery garden. In doing so, the Swedish and multinational staff affiliated
with our mission will enjoy their beauty as well as our numerous visitors. Best
wishes in your efforts to honor the memory of your father.
Thomas
M. T. Niles, Ambassadors, Athens, Greece
Thank you very much for your letter with which you enclosed the seeds
that you asked to be planted in Greece in memory of your father.
I will be delighted to plant the seeds from one of the packets at the Embassy, and I will ask a Greek friend of mine, who has a lovely garden at his house in a suburb of Athens named Pendeli, to plant the other. I will watch carefully for the results, and I will keep you informed. Let me say that I was very touched by your effort to perpetuate the memory of your late father, and I am honored to have the opportunity to participate.
