LANDIS PORTRAITS: Sue Tricario

By Nolan Marciniec

Sue Tri­cario admit­ted that books and vol­un­teer­ing are in my life blood” — and that both led her to the Arbore­tum. Sue, the recip­i­ent of the 2018 Vol­un­teer of the Year award, said that her com­mit­ment to Lan­dis’ book shop just seemed the nat­ur­al thing to do.”

Sue has always been an avid read­er, and her read­ing list is eclec­tic and all-inclu­sive. She instilled her love of books in her three chil­dren by read­ing to them from their ear­li­est years on. The Amish barn that hous­es her antiques busi­ness grad­u­al­ly mor­phed” into a used book store. Then one year she read the fine print” on an Arbore­tum plant sale ad and real­ized that books as well as plants were a big part of the spring and fall sales. She worked along­side Ken and Mar­i­on Hotopp and, as she said, their spir­it rubs off.” Sue became a reg­u­lar book shop vol­un­teer and Lan­dis enthusiast.

The Hotopps have will­ing­ly ced­ed some of the respon­si­bil­i­ty for the books sales to Sue, but she said that her men­tors Ken and Mar­i­on will always remain the book­ies” who began the tra­di­tion of book sales at Lan­dis and will remain active­ly involved in its suc­cess. Just last year, the book sale and the raf­fle (which Sue intro­duced) brought in over $2000 in rev­enue for the Arboretum. 

Vol­un­teer­ing is just who she is, she explained. Her vol­un­teer­ing has run the gamut from Can­dy Striper in high school to the Elks in her mar­ried years, from blood dri­ves to soup kitchens. She served as pres­i­dent of the Jef­fer­son His­tor­i­cal Soci­ety and, dur­ing the win­ter months she spends in Flori­da, she is active in the local Friends of the Library.

But her vol­un­teer­ing expe­ri­ence at Lan­dis is dif­fer­ent, she said: it’s “ a unique oppor­tu­ni­ty … [at] a very unique place: the lev­el of coop­er­a­tion is so incred­i­ble. There are no demands: what­ev­er you give is appre­ci­at­ed … ” Sue also point­ed out that it boils down to the peo­ple. I get the warmest feel­ing [from them]. I’ve met such a vari­ety of peo­ple here, but there is a com­mon­al­i­ty in gar­den­ing and books … and pro­tect­ing the land for future generations.” 

Sue grew up on what had been a 70-acre farm in New Jer­sey, and her gar­den there includ­ed both veg­eta­bles and peren­ni­als. But for more than 40 years, she and her fam­i­ly spent their sum­mers in Jef­fer­son, cre­at­ing mem­o­ries that she and the chil­dren still cher­ish. Sue per­ma­nent­ly relo­cat­ed to Schoharie Coun­ty after her retire­ment from the legal depart­ment at John­son & John­son in New Brunswick, NJ – tak­ing care to bring a cut­ting of a lilac that grew in her grandmother’s gar­den. Although she has accli­mat­ed to life in Upstate NY, she admit­ted that the short grow­ing sea­son still leaves her with green toma­toes in August! (She has since dis­cov­ered Shaul’s pro­duce stand.) I’ve lived a blessed life,” Sue said. She counts the Arbore­tum as one of her bless­ings. And we are blessed to have her.


Spring 2019

Volume 37 , Number 1

Share this

The Latest from Landis

Mar 18, 2024

Landis Signature Spring Plant Book and Bake Sale

You don’t want to miss this! read more

Mar 18, 2024

Landis Houseplant Swap!

If you’re a houseplant lover, this event is for you! read more

Mar 11, 2024 | Anita Sanchez

A Shallow Dive into Vernal Pools

Spring is the time for water. First the icicles start to drip. Then the streams... read more

Mar 11, 2024 | Sam McClary

Never Underestimate Nature: Rejuvenating Old Apple Trees

While driving along country roads in the autumn, watching the falling leaves – I suddenly... read more

Mar 11, 2024 | Shayne Mitchell

News and Muse from the Bluebird Trail

I think it is safe to say that the Eastern bluebird is the favorite bird... read more

Mar 11, 2024 | Sue Tricario

Landis Membership Away from Home

A membership at the Landis Arboretum is your passport to over 360 public gardens and... read more

News Archive