WHITEHOUSE – The pinks, reds, yellows and whites of the riotous blooms all throughout the Village of Whitehouse may be gone soon, but the innovation that Whitehouse Public Service brings to public spaces is evergreen.
James Forrest, a 26-year employee of the department and the primary planner for public landscaping, brought back from this year’s America in Bloom Symposium more than distinguished awards for Whitehouse. Tours of Old Town Alexandria and networking with experts in everything from gardening to grant writing gave him a bushelful of ideas to continue beautifying the village and encouraging other communities to do so as well.
“I want every community in northwest Ohio to be as beautiful as Whitehouse,” he said.
Forrest, who lives in Swanton Township, took his first trip to the nation’s capital in September to accept for Whitehouse the Floral Impact Outstanding Achievement Award and the Small Town, Big Impact Award, which were announced at the annual America in Bloom (AIB) national gathering and awards celebration held this year in the Washington, D.C. area.
He said it was a humbling experience to be honored as well as to be exposed to such a different culture with deep historical roots and massive metropolitan infrastructure. He said he was excited to bring back concepts and best practices that were shared by other AIB participants from all over the country.
“I’m trying to create that interest all year round,” Forrest said of his goals for Whitehouse.
Ways to bring color into the parks and along the main travel corridors after Public Service removes the live flowers are priorities for him, and possibilities include adding winter greenery to the light pole baskets and painting murals on the streets around the parks.
“I thought that was a cool idea,” he said of the artistic projects shared at the symposium.
Whitehouse also received special recognition for Overall Impression from its AIB advisors, who toured the community this past summer, according to America in Bloom Executive Director Laura Kunkle.
“Every year our participants raise the bar, and the accomplishments and progress shown by this year’s group is remarkable. These are, without a doubt, some of the best places to live, work, and visit,” Kunkle said. “Congratulations to Whitehouse for the excellent work making your community more beautiful and vibrant.”
America in Bloom is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting nationwide beautification programs and personal and community involvement through the use of flowers, plants, trees, and other environmental and lifestyle enhancements. For its 2026 award categories, participating communities from across the country were evaluated on seven criteria: community vitality, overall impression, environmental initiatives, heritage celebration, urban forestry, landscaped areas, floral impact, and community involvement.
As visitors to Whitehouse effuse on the beauty of its blooms, Forrest is quick to credit the entire Public Service department – especially the seasonal workers who do the bulk of the watering.
“It’s a full department effort,” he said, adding that he wishes the temporary hires were still here to be included in the honors.
Susie Stratton, who – along with her husband, Steve – owns Stratton Greenhouse in Bluffton where Whitehouse’s flowering baskets are grown each year, said Forrest is the fertile soil that yields village recognition.
“He is the real reason, as far as I’m concerned, why Whitehouse is as beautiful as it is. What he does every year, he just keeps improving the look of Whitehouse,” she said.
Stratton is an ardent supporter of America in Bloom and its Buds in Bloom youth initiative. She said the organization provides important support in an industry that requires such constant labor and needs thoughtful planning.
As a sponsor and a business owner, Stratton said she too gains valuable trade tips each time she attends an AIB symposium, learning how to use a compass to help with mowing fields and how Lewis, Del. attracted a 500-member volunteer force to help with its beautification efforts.
“Our work is hard work,” she said.
Stratton Greenhouse staff plants flowers in March and makes sure they are well rooted and established before delivering them to Whitehouse and other communities around Memorial Day.
Forrest said Steve and Susie Stratton have acted as both a reliable vendor and a helpful resource for him, and he swears there is nothing special he adds to the petunias to get them to grow into the massive pink petal balls that hang more than 6 feet down the light poles by the end of summer.
“We just water them,” he insists.
Dedicated tending yields results all over Whitehouse. Cannas become fiery red-tipped giants in quarry stone features along the multiuse pathway. Banana plants look like enormous green fans in the Wabash Cannonball Trail plazas. Elephant ear leaves spread wide at the Village Park shelter house. Purple fountain grasses sprouting from downtown sidewalk urns reach for the sky.
Whitehouse Mayor Rich Bingham said the village’s efforts have created a vibrant, welcoming atmosphere.
“The flowers throughout the community have become one of the most frequently praised topics on social media, and for good reason,” Bingham said.
Forrest said he hopes more and more communities enhance their public spaces with flowers, artwork and other decorations, as well as consider joining America in Bloom. He praised neighboring City of Waterville for expanding its beautification, while acknowledging that investing in planters and landscape beds – and the labor required to maintain them – can be a significant budget impact.
Forrest paid his own way to D.C. for this year’s AIB symposium, and he said he was sorry to see that some award winners from smaller or far-away communities were unable to attend at all. He said he intends to propose to the organization’s leadership that it build into the fee for symposium attendance enough to cover the cost of at least one representative from one other member community.
He said he already is looking forward to next year’s workshops and ceremonies, which will be held closer in Holland, Mich. – a natural location famous for its tulips – whether Whitehouse wins any more awards or not.
Stratton said Forrest’s efforts likely will continue to earn recognition.
“He’s thrown his heart and soul into every project,” she said. “It’s not just about him; it’s about the whole community.”
