GRACE CHAPMAN ELTON NAMED CEO OF TOWER HILL BOTANIC GARDEN

Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden’s Horticulture Director Grace Chapman Elton has accepted the position of CEO at the historic Tower Hill Botanic Garden in Boylston, MA. Her last day at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden is March 17, 2017.

Elton has been horticulture director at Lewis Ginter for five and a half years. Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden Executive Director Shane Tippett expressed pleasure and pride in the announcement. “From the moment of her arrival in October 2011, it was clear that the qualities that made her such a gift to our Garden and community would be sought by others.  It is a wonderful step for Grace in her career, an exciting adventure for Grace and her husband AJ, and a boon to Tower Hill, a garden with a history that extends back to the 1840’s, and a future brightened by the arrival of Grace.”

Elton is an active and recognized leader in the horticulture world–nationally, regionally, and locally. She is a board member of the American Public Gardens Association and the Central Virginia Nursery Landscape Association. In 2013, she was recognized on the “Richmond Top 40 Under 40” list in Style Weekly magazine and she is a frequent spokesperson and contributor to horticulture and garden related media.

During Elton’s tenure, she worked to build a strong horticulture department which has been a factor in Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden’s recognition as one of the country’s top public gardens. “One of the many things that will form Grace’s legacy at Lewis Ginter is my personal confidence in the strength of our horticultural department and its focus on our mission and strategic objectives,” said Shane Tippett.

Elton will assume her new duties in April.  To learn more about Tower Hill: http://www.towerhillbg.org/