Tennessee’s First Lady held a luncheon Thursday to raise money for continuing restoration of the Governor’s residence, reports WTVF-TV of Nashville.
The Tennessee Governor’s Mansion was originally built for a family in 1929 and purchased by the state in 1949. The renovation and restoration of the home began in spring of 2010 by former First Lady Andrea Conte.
The current first lady, Crissy Haslam, is continuing the project through her term. Haslam said the looked at the master plan for the project and has chosen to work on the landscaping and gardening around the residence. She will be partnering with Tennessee landscape artist Ben Page.
Haslam and Page unveiled the plan to renovate the garden on Thursday, and began raising money for the project.
“It’ll be a project that goes on for several years, hopefully I can complete it. We’ll see. [There are] about 630 to 640 people here today — men and women from across the state with an interest in horticulture and gardening and they are here because of that reason,” said Haslam.
Mrs. Haslam said they’ve had a lot of interest in the project from Garden Clubs around the state
News release is below.

News release from First Lady’s office:
NASHVILLE – First Lady Crissy Haslam hosted the First Lady’s Luncheon to garner private funds for renovations and restorations of the Tennessee Residence grounds. Private funds will be used to restore the landscape back to its original design and will incorporate vegetation native to Tennessee. Funding will also be used to create an inventory system to document existing infrastructure and vegetation on the property and to create a plan to ensure the health and sustainability of the restored and renovated landscape.
“The Tennessee Residence is a beloved treasure for our state and we want to do what we can to restore and preserve the beautiful landscape that surrounds the Residence,” Mrs. Haslam said.
After a statewide search, Ben Page with Page Duke Landscape was selected to lead the renovation project. Page has been involved with several high profile projects which include the United States Naval Observatory, the official home of the Vice President of the United States.
More than 700 men and women from across the state joined the First Lady at the luncheon, demonstrating their support for the next phase of the Residence renovation project.
“I look forward to continuing to raise support for the Tennessee Residence, as we work to restore the Residence grounds, highlighting our state’s historic and unique vegetation that makes us all proud to call this beautiful state home,” Mrs. Haslam said.
For more information about First Lady Crissy Haslam you can visit www.tn.gov/firstlady/ or follow Mrs. Haslam’s efforts to improve early childhood literacy at http://www.facebook.com/CrissyHaslam or on twitter @CrissyHaslam.