Flowers for the President and his Lady
by
Carmen Cosentino

Anne Marie and I still get frequent questions about working on the team that does flowers for the Presidential Inaugurations. Here are some answers to the most frequently asked questions.

No, the team was not activated for the Inauguration of President Barak Obama. The President’s Inaugural staff advised the Society of American Florists, they run the project, that he would prefer to not have an ostentatious show of flowers due to the current economic problems we face..

How does one get picked for this one? Actually, today, getting on the team first time is
hardest. In our case, I happened to be on the Board of Directors of the Society of
American Florists back in the 80’s when the PIC (Presidential Inaugural Committee)
approached us to see if we could work with them on flowers for the upcoming festivities. Being a designer of some note, I was asked to be part of that team; and still am. Today, more than 1500 floral designers apply for a spot. Since more than 2/3 of the team returns each time, that leaves about 30 spots. The powers that be are looking for people who have been in the industry for some time, people who can copy the arrangements designed by the Committee and those who have given back to the floral industry by teaching or being involved.

How is the pay for the assignment? Actually, quite good. You get your room paid,
sometimes at a nice hotel and sometimes at a not so nice place. You get breakfast and a
box lunch. Most of the time it is a turkey sandwich, an apple, an orange juice and a
package of chips. That’s it. Oh, yes, you have to get yourself to Washington. First
breakfast is at 5:30 and second at 7. Depends on which team you are on. There are 11 of
them. Somehow this writer always gets the early shift. Then you are bussed to a
warehouse on the outskirts of D.C, where you work the first 2 days until 6, with the
entire crew of 100 designers and about 90 drivers, helpers, welders, carpenters and so on. Evenings are generally on your own. The next 3 days are on site. Where you get the
flowers that you worked on the first two days, finish the arrangement and place them
where they belong and do all the finishing work.

For 3 inaugurals I had the Building Arts Center (once called the Pension Building.) It is a
magnificent structure and I like it because there are 2 events there. For the 19th , the
entire building was decorated with orange and pink flowers. Centerpieces were made for 150 tables. The ten people at each table were contributors of more than $100,000 to the election campaign. After the dinner, a crew came in and tore everything down and when we arrived at 6 in the morning we had just 10 hours before the Secret Service cleared the building. It was done in red and white flowers with blue accents.
Where do they come from?
Now the big question. How much does all this cost me, the tax payer? Believe it or not,
not a dime. The balls and dinners are entirely funded from the ticket monies from people
who attend those functions. Do you really use a lot of flowers? At the last inaugural, in 2005, the flower count was staggering. There were nearly 50,000 roses, 20,000 tulips and 5000 stems of lilies. In all the designers used nearly 300,000 stems of flowers and tons of foliage. (incidentally, not one yellow rose. Seems that the First Lady does not wish to be known as “the yellow rose of Texas. Can we blame her?)
Why do we work so hard for nothing? Well there are several reasons. It’s giving back
to an industry that has been good to us. It’s wanting to be part of history. It is being able
to make these magnificent, large and beautiful arrangements and not having to count
flowers to make them saleable so as to make a profit. It is an opportunity to spend a
week with the finest designers in the country and to chat with old friends. And, perhaps
it is because I have an affinity for box lunches with an apple, a candy bar and a stale
turkey sandwich.