SUPPORT
DONATE
Online
By Mail
Mail a check to:
Friends of the National Arboretum
3501 New York Avenue NE
Washington, DC 20002
By Phone
Call the office to securely give your credit card information over the phone: 202.544.8733
With Securities
Send stock donations directly to FONA’s accounts. Email cathy@fona.org for securities and wire transfers instructions.
Through DAF
Give directly and securely through your donor-advised fund.
FONA MEMBERSHIP
FONA members enjoy exclusive benefits throughout the year.
During the past 10 years through the ongoing support of our loyal membership base, we have been able to hold our membership dues flat while strengthening the ways in which FONA supports the National Arboretum and our community through programs, events, and partnerships. With the rising costs we are all facing each day, we are at the point where we must increase our membership dues to cover these costs.
We are so grateful to you, our members, who make all of our work possible. Members enjoy exclusive benefits throughout the year, but more importantly, members champion FONA and the Arboretum.
- $45
- Membership for one individual
- Subscription to Arbor Friends, FONA’s member magazine
- Invitation to member-only events, including the Members-Only hours at the Garden Fair & Plant Sale in April
- 20% off educational programs at the Arboretum
- Reciprocal discounts at over 345+ gardens and arboreta across the country, through the American Horticultural Society’s Reciprocal Admissions Program. See the list of participating sites.
- $75
- Membership for two individuals
- Includes all of the benefits listed above
- $150
- Membership for two individuals
- Includes all of the benefits listed above, plus
- A gift of an Arboretum Introduction plant at our annual Garden Fair and Plant Sale!
- $300
- Membership for two individuals
- Includes all of the benefits listed above
- $600
- Membership for two individuals
- Includes all of the benefits listed above
Questions about membership? Contact Claire Broderick at 202-918-1838 or cbroderick@fona.org.



DAVID FAIRCHILD SOCIETY
The David Fairchild Society is a community of supporters passionate about the National Arboretum’s gardens, plant research, education, and community engagement efforts. David Fairchild spent his life exploring the world, collecting plants, and sharing them throughout America and the world. He brought us many plants and foods that are staples in American culture, such as ornamental cherry trees and Meyer lemons. Join us as we embark on a bold and innovative future!
Contribute an annual gift to join the David Fairchild Society for a year at one of the following membership levels.
$1,200
The Arboretum has one of the largest and oldest assemblages of cultivars of American holly (Ilex opaca) you’ll find anywhere today. Hollies are spectacularly unique, diverse, and form the bedrock of American garden design.
Just like a holly tree’s berries in winter, members of our Holly Level form the foundation of our Society and allow it to flourish year-round.
$2,500
Crapemyrtle cultivars created by the Arboretum are hardy, adaptable, mildew-resistant, and bring a spectacular array of color to gardens across America during the hottest part of the year. The Arboretum’s 31 crapemyrtle cultivars introduced over the years continue to enhance the beauty of gardens throughout the world.
Members of our Crapemyrtle Level bring vibrancy and energy to our Society.
$5,000
Magnolias designed by the Arboretum bring a dazzling diversity of bloom time, colors, and size to gardens throughout the year. As a prominent feature in the Arboretum’s work to develop new and improved landscape plants, deciduous and magnolia cultivars pique interest in American gardens in spring and summer with shades of pink, white, and purple.
Members of our Magnolia Level support the Arboretum in its quest for superior ornamental plants.
$10,000
The Arboretum’s boxwood collection is one of the most complete collections of temperate-growing boxwood in the world. It provides key genetic materials to Arboretum scientists in order to research disease resistant varieties.
Members of our Boxwood Level are critical to conserving the Arboretum and ensuring the long-term success of its mission.
$25,000
Azaleas designed by the Arboretum create a long-lasting cacophony of color every spring across the country. Dedicated researchers spent decades breeding varieties from around the world to produce varieties that are cold hardy, have larger flower size, and vary bloom time.
Members of our Azalea Level are the pillar of our Society and are dedicated to innovating the Arboretum into the future.
$50,000+
David Fairchild spent his life exploring the world, collecting plants, and sharing them throughout America and the world. He brought us many plants and foods that are staples in American culture, such as ornamental cherry trees and Meyer lemons.
Members of our David Fairchild Level are the bold explorers committed to sharing the National Arboretum with the world.
Questions about the David Fairchild Society? Contact Claire Alrich at 202-918-1868 or calrich@fona.org.
Donor list as of September 6, 2022.
David Fairchild $50,000+
Robert and Kate Bartlett
John and Julie Hamre
Azalea $25,000
Betty and Alex Boyle
Lynne H. Church
Linda and John Derrick
Lucy S. Rhame
Tuckie and Don Westfall
Boxwood $10,000
Anonymous
Colien Hefferan and Hollis Summers
Barbara and James Shea
Margaret Strand
Ken and Dorothy Woodcock
Helena Zinkham
Magnolia $5,000
Bonnie and Louis Cohen
John F. Cooney
Denis Crane
Louisa Copeland Duemling
Elizabeth M. Dugan
Clara Elias and Justin Thorpe
Michael and Kathryn Hanley
Lynne and Joseph Horning
Liza and Andrew Labadie
Rafael V. Lopez and Linda I. Marks
Laura Mansilla and Asa Harrington
Bill Matuszeski and Mary Procter
Eric A. Michael and Craig Kruger
Peter and Jainel Morris
Catherine Casey Nottingham
Carey Paquette
Dede and Tim Petri
Robert and Nancy Shoemaker
Beth Wehrle
Crapemyrtle $2,500
Anonymous
Barry L. Abel
Harold Belcher
Sally Donner and Kenneth Briers
Charles and Linda Findlay
Sherrill Houghton
Sheldon and Audrey Katz
Anne MacMillan and Tim Bass
Kevin and Marla McIntosh
Tuuli Mooney-Schindler
Jacqueline E. Pechmann
Ellen C. Petersen
Craven Rand
Jeffrey K. Stine and Marcel C. LaFollette
Holly $1,200
Bentley Andrews
Suzy Bakshian and Vinny Chiappinelli
Marion S. Ballard
Suzie and Rich Bissell
Wendy Blair
Deborah E. Bowles and Derik Burgess
Michael and Samantha Brickman
Nancy and John Bryson
Laura and Guy Cecala
Martha Van Dale
Diana Ferris
Joseph and Agatha Francis
Barbara W. Gould
Chandler Goule
Bean Granger
Frank Guzzetta and Paul Manville
Robin and Jay Hammer
Lindsay Shea Hardesty
Corbin C. Harwood
Jennifer and Christopher Hatcher
Gene Hix
James Hughes
William Inglee and Jane Madden
Virginia Kromm and Joe Shultz
Jack Krumholtz
Annetta H. Kushner
John and Jean Lange
Amanda Leiter and Sambhav Sankar
Jennifer Levin
Sara Mills Mazie
Kathleen McNamara
Anita Menghetti
Mollitor Family
Pamela and Byrne Murphy
Mary Eugenia and Theodore Myer
Shirley and Frank Nicolai
Kat and Andrew Norris
Elizabeth L. Nottingham
Heather Paradise
John and Melissa Pflieger
Karen Rand
Pamela Raymont-Simpson and Charles J. Simpson, Jr.
Bob Schramm and Nancy Williams
Liz Shriver and Jon Blake
Louis and Nancy Slade
Kimberly and John Snedden
Michael G. Stevens
Emily Stopa and John C. MacMillan, Jr.
Robert and Ann Thompson
John and Val Wheeler
Elsa B. Williams
COMMEMORATIVE BENCHES
Honor loved ones or special occasions by donating a teak bench at the National Arboretum. Each commemorative bench will have a plaque engraved with your message and will remain for 15 years.
Past benches have been placed all over the Arboretum. Many are nestled in quiet nooks along streams, stand sentinel in the meadow with the Capitol Columns, and watch flowers bloom all across the Arboretum.
This memorial not only provides a beautiful spot for respite and relaxation for visitors to the National Arboretum, but also supports the Arboretum’s public gardens and scientific work. Your donation of a commemorative bench is tax deductible.


PLANNED GIVING
Making a planned gift is a wonderful way to show your support and appreciation for Friends of the National Arboretum and its mission while accommodating your own personal, financial, estate-planning, and philanthropic goals. Make your legacy part of the future of the U.S. National Arboretum.
While we encourage you to check with your financial advisor, there are multiple ways to make a legacy gift, including making FONA a beneficiary of a retirement account, life insurance policy, will, or living trust. See our suggested bequest language. Please contact us at info@fona.org with questions or to learn about other legacy gift options.
Thank you for considering a legacy gift to Friends of the National Arboretum! Once you have established your plans, please contact our office (info@fona.org) or Cathy Kerkam (Cathy@fona.org) to let us know of your plans so that we may thank you and include you as a member of our Heritage Society. Have you already listed FONA in your will? Let us know — we would love to thank you and include you in FONA’s Heritage Society.
With appreciation to those who have generously supported FONA through estate gifts:
Anonymous
Harold Belcher
Lynne H. Church
John F. Cooney
Robert C. Daniels, Jr. & Richard R. Beman, Jr.
Ann Fessenden Clymer
Dorothy Kidder
Herman W. Koch & Rosalie Martin Koch
Frederick G. Meyer
Edith N. K. Meyer Trust
Michael G. Stevens
VOLUNTEERING & JOBS

Springhouse Run
Help keep the restored Springhouse Run stream healthy by pulling invasive vines and weeds and planting along the bank. No experience needed! We will provide supplies and guidance. See our calendar for available dates and times.

Gardening
Individual, group, and youth volunteers provide crucial help with gardening tasks such as weeding, planting, mulching, and pest control from April through mid-November. You don’t need prior experience, but you must be willing to make friends with the soil and the bugs! See our garden page to learn more.

Events
Spend a day enjoying plants and people by volunteering to help with our annual Garden Fair and Plant Sale, or let us know if you would like to help with other events like our concerts and 5Ks. Sign up to volunteer today.

Jobs
Check out our Jobs page to see if we’re hiring. Sign up for FONA Field Notes to be the first to know about future employment opportunities.