Shane Tippett

About Shane Tippett

Executive Director Shane Tippett's passion for plants was kindled in the early ‘90s by a Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden arborist who mentored him on the care of specimen trees. This passion underlies his firm conviction in the transformative power of gardens to re-shape and renew communities, families and individuals and this continues to direct his leadership.

Dec 27th, 2019

A Year of Service to Community

Taryn Davis was just 21 when she lost her husband in Iraq. In the midst of her own struggle with tragedy, she reached out to help other young military widows […]

Nov 19th, 2019

MESSAGE FROM LEWIS GINTER’S DIRECTOR

Planting Seeds for Change Richard Piacentini, the visionary CEO of Pittsburgh’s Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, famously has written with regard to the challenges of environmental stress “Being Less Bad […]

Nov 26th, 2018

Our Changed Climate

I remember three things vividly from high school chemistry in Bozeman, Mont.: a terrible walk in December 1972 from home to school for a 6:30 a.m. lab with the temperature […]

Jun 26th, 2018

Making Space

The young man in duck trousers and a company shirt had just finished off-loading the last of four ball-and-burlap pin oaks. As he busied himself latching up the tailgate of […]

Apr 12th, 2018

Servant Leader
Randee Humphrey

The leadership team at Lewis Ginter is as varied as you think it might be, given all the diverse things the Garden does to connect people through plants for the […]

Nov 20th, 2017

Message from Lewis Ginter’s Director

Let Us Tell You a Story… I live far from the Rocky Mountains of my youth. Still, the horizons in my dreams are sometimes stark, soaring and snow-capped. Upon waking, […]

May 22nd, 2017

Locally Grown

Message from the Executive Director Crape myrtles, Lagerstroemia indica, are native to the other side of the planet, with a genus named after an 18th-century Swedish merchant. Yet crape myrtles […]

Mar 20th, 2017

Old Friend: Spring

Message from the Executive Director Spring comes softly in Virginia. Not the weather necessarily, which can be gentle or harsh, with snows and gales not being uncommon. For our plants, […]

Nov 6th, 2016

Brighten the Night

Message from the Executive Director Right after lunch on the first Tuesday in August, the largest meeting space in the Robins Visitors Center was standing room only. Garden volunteers and […]

Jun 23rd, 2016

Unearthing our Potential

Message from the Executive Director Grab a shovel. Walk over to a bare spot in a planting bed or a flagged corner of the lawn. With the handle leaning on […]

Mar 17th, 2016

Gratitude

We may be thankful for many things in a garden, but not everything. Under the “thankful for” heading: the blazing color of spring bloom, the annual return of flirty butterflies […]

Nov 5th, 2015

Message from the Director

Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden’s mission is education; our passion is connecting plants and people to measurably improve our community. When planning Dominion Energy GardenFest of Lights, we remind ourselves of […]

Jun 24th, 2015

From the Executive Director

My favorite moment from the Spring at Lewis Ginter: A young mother and three little girls are walking through the Central Garden. Mom is telling a fairytale in a breathless voice. […]

Mar 17th, 2015

On Being Second

by Executive Director, Shane Tippett, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden This time last year, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden was fortunate to be included in a month-long, on-line “10 Best Public Garden” […]

Nov 11th, 2014

Legacy: Bicycle "Craze" Hits Richmond Again

by Shane Tippett, Executive Director, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden 120 years ago, Richmond was swept up in a national “bicycle craze.” The popularity of cycling soared with the arrival of safe, affordable […]