Huei Young’s garden tour
Huei Young, a longtime Davis resident, has used her Asian-inspired garden as a site for many fundraisers over the years. On May 20, Young held tours of her garden with all of the proceeds going toward Yolo Hospice. This fundraiser was very personal and meaningful to Young, whose late husband, Frank Young, was cared for by Yolo Hospice.
“They treat you like a family and it feels like you have a relative and not a stranger helping you,” Young said about Yolo Hospice. “You don’t feel alone. I think they are very caring, and I want everybody in Davis to know and to never worry about getting old because Davis is a very good community.”
Young’s garden stands out among the houses within her Davis neighborhood. She spent 45 years changing the entire landscape of her yard and her house for it to become the artistic masterpiece that it is now. Gardening has always been an interest of Young’s, whose inspiration comes from her father.
“I compile all my father’s artwork […] and I put all the art he has done into my garden,” Young said.
Many may see Young’s house as they walk along the greenbelt next to her vibrant home. The amount of color, artistic detail and the sound of her three ponds can make one feel at ease. Young’s garden has been the site of many fundraisers for organizations, such as Shriners Hospital. Young is invested in helping others. Besides gardening, Young’s other hobby is volunteering as a cook for homeless shelters, an activity she used to do alongside her husband.
Huei’s garden holds not only the sentimental value of her father, but of her late husband as well. A bright bench sits surrounded by flowers in her front yard in memory of Frank.
“Other people go to cemeteries, but I go there,” Young said. “I change the color around the bench depending on the season for him.”
Having the ability to give back to an organization that offered her so much help provides Young with solace.
“Hospice makes you feel good […] people don’t always understand it,” Young said. “They helped me. I had a caregiver stay with me for one year.”
Yolo Hospice is incredibly grateful for what Young is doing.
“There have not been any other fundraisers like this,” said Louise Joyce, the community relations manager at Yolo Hospice.
People can be misinformed or unaware of all that Yolo Hospice provides. Joyce expressed that it is more than just helping a patient.
“Part of the service of Hospice is to not only support the patient, but the family, and remain with them until that loved one passes,” Joyce said. “And then afterwards, we provide bereavement services to get the family through the first year.”
Ashley Flemming, a second-year sociology major at UC Davis, was originally unaware of the services that Yolo Hospice offered. Flemming, after learning about Yolo Hospice, spoke in support of Huei Young’s fundraiser.
“I think it’s a really great thing that she’s doing,” Flemming said. “Not a lot of people nowadays will do something so genuine out of their heart and give back to a cause that not a lot of people think about donating to.
All the money fundraised for Yolo Hospice will go toward patient outcare and uninsured patients.
Huei Young’s garden is a hidden Davis gem. Young wants people to take in the beauty of her garden and to see the potential within it.
“You can make nothing into something — anybody can do it,” Young said. “I did it beginning with one plant to all of this.”
Written by: Cassidy Kays — city@theaggie.org
