It began at a school dance, when I noticed how many beautiful flowers were left behind once the night ended.

I had been giving flowers to seniors with the help of a grant. When the grant money ran out, I needed a source of flowers that could sustain itself. So I decided to collect the flowers left over from school dances and repurpose them into something I knew seniors would love.

I started the Forget Me Not Flower Drive in October 2025 to do just that. After collecting bouquets from students at homecoming, I put together a team to help me take them apart and rearrange them into smaller table centerpieces. When we passed them out at a memory care facility, the residents and staff were overjoyed to have flowers brightening the place. That was the moment I understood the power flowers have to bring joy, and I knew I wanted the drive to grow.

So far, we have received donations from four schools: Trinity Valley School, Southwest Christian School, Paschal High School and Fort Worth Country Day, along with a wedding and a handful of other events. Those flowers have reached four local senior living homes and memory care facilities: James L. West, Sunrise Senior Living, The Ridglea Senior Assisted Living and Mira Vista Court Rehabilitation Suites.

Our mission is to spread joy through flowers to seniors across America, and we would love your help.

Here’s how you can contribute

• Start a flower drive in your cityOne person is enough to begin a chapter. Start a drive
• Donate money for vasesGifts pay for the vases and supplies that turn donated stems into centerpieces. Give
• Donate flowers to a local chapterLeftover flowers from a florist, a company event, a school dance, or anywhere else flowers would otherwise go unused. Arrange a pickup