The Society of American Florists will honor four professionals with induction into the American Academy of Floriculture (AAF) during the Stars of the Industry Awards Dinner on Sept. 9 at SAF Palm Beach 2017, the association’s 133rd Annual Convention at The Breakers in Florida.
The 2017 AAF inductees are:
- Maggie Binet, AAF, AIFD, CPF, PFCI, of Le Jardin Binet in Englewood, Colorado
- Zoë Prosser Gallina, AAF, of Botanica International Design Studio in Tampa, Florida
- Jodi McShan, AAF of McShan Florist Inc., in Dallas, Texas
- Lynne Tischler, AAF, CPFD, PFCI of Your Enchanted Florist in St. Paul, Minnesota
AAF members have earned the prestigious rank by committing their time and energy to both the floral industry and their local communities. AAF members are vetted for volunteering and leadership service to the industry and their communities, and each application must be submitted with several letters of recommendation from local community professionals and peers in the industry.
“The Academy’s stringent requirements make AAF an achievement recognized throughout the floral industry,” said SAF Awards Committee Chairman Robert Williams II, AAF, PFCI, of Strategic Business Development in Floriculture in Macedonia, Ohio.
An overview of each inductee’s accomplishments follows:
Maggie Binet, AAF, AIFD, CPF, PFCI
Maggie Binet, AAF, AIFD, CPF, PFCI, has an insatiable appetite for floral education. She has traveled around the world to study with renowned designers, and she embraces any opportunity to share her knowledge with others.
Binet, the owner of Le Jardin Binet LLC in Englewood, Colorado, helped create the state’s Certified Professional Florist program and, in 2014, founded The School of Floral Arts in Denver. A board member of the Colorado Retail Florists Association (CRFA), Floral Association of the Rockies (FAR) and the South Central Region of the American Institute of Floral Designers (AIFD), she frequently gives presentations and leads workshops for experienced designers as well as those just beginning their creative journeys. She has won the Rocky Mountain Cup, the FAR’s Bridal Bouquet Competition, the Denver Home and Garden Show’s Table Top Display Contest, Rocky Mountain Designer of the Year and CRFA’s President’s Award.
Binet has served as a design consultant for the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, the Colorado Children’s Chorale and the ArtReach Festival of Trees. She has also designed costumes for the Bolshoi Ballet Company’s performances in Vail and provided set design for the Metropolitan Opera’s performances in Denver. For the past five years, she has chaired the Rocky Mountain Floral Expo.
Outside of the industry, Binet is active in local and regional politics, as well as city planning with the Platte Area Reclamation Commission. She also leads the social justice committee at her church.
Zoë Gallina, AAF
Zoë Gallina, AAF, grew up in the event industry, under the tutelage of her father, Ian Prosser, AAF, AIFD, PFCI, NDSF, one of the country’s preeminent designers, known for his large-scale productions that include two presidential inaugurations. Gallina, too, demonstrated a remarkable aptitude for design, winning an American Floral Society design competition at age 8.
After graduating from the University of North Florida in 2006 with a Bachelor’s degree in communications and advertising, Gallina joined her family’s business, Botanica International Design & Décor Studio in Tampa, Florida. Now, she is at the helm as Botanica’s creative director. Her work been published in many publications, including Floral Management, Grace Ormonde Wedding Style, The Knot and The Huffington Post.
Professionally trained through the Association of Certified Professional Wedding Consultants, Gallina is a sought-after speaker for numerous organizations, such as The Tampa Bay Chapter of the National Association of Catering Executives and on several occasions, she and her father have presented before packed rooms for the Society of American Florists. The two of them also style photo shoots for Accent Décor’s catalogues.
She has been involved with several charitable organizations and is an active fundraiser for Moffitt Cancer Center.
Jodi McShan, AAF, TMF
Third-generation florist Jodi McShan, AAF, got her start filling water picks at age 4. These days, the master multi-tasker runs her own law firm while also immersing herself in the various responsibilities of her family’s Dallas flower shop, including care and handling, design, sales, delivery, marketing and networking.
The vice president and co-owner of McShan Florist Inc. is an avid reader of industry magazines, business publications and research and trend reports, and uses her knowledge to guide the shop’s management team. She helps lead design presentations for consumers, as well as high school students who aspire to become professional florists, and writes a blog about flower and plant care.
McShan serves on the Texas State Florists’ Association’s Legislative Committee and is a certified Texas Master Florist.
She belongs to the Junior League of Dallas, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Women’s Auxiliary for Baylor University Hospital, and the Women’s Auxiliary to Children’s Medical Center.
She works with Café Momentum, a restaurant run by teens who’ve been through the juvenile justice system, that works to improve their self esteem, work ethics, and help them start their careers on the right foot. Her community involvement earned her a spot in the 2017 Class of Leadership Dallas, an exclusive group of leaders committed to civic leadership. The National Advocates included McShan in its “Top 40 Under 40” list and Texas Lawyer named her a “Rising Star.”
Lynne Tischler, AAF, CPFD, PFCI
Twenty years after she received her advanced floral design certificate from Lane Community College in Eugene, Oregon in 1994, Lynne Tischler, AAF, CPFD, PFCI, became an instructor at the Koehler & Dramm Institute of Floristry in Minneapolis, one of the nation’s most renowned flower schools.
With her wealth of knowledge and effervescent personality, Tischler, who also owns Your Enchanted Florist in St. Paul, Minnesota, enthralls not only Koehler & Dramm students, but also members of garden clubs and horticultural societies, television viewers and subscribers to her shop’s YouTube channel.
She has led installations for Art in Bloom exhibits at the Minneapolis Institute of Art, co-chaired Art Scoop at the Rice Street Festival and designed for the Minnesota Governor’s Residence, the American Swedish Institute, the Philadelphia Flower Show, the White House Easter Egg Roll and the 2017 Presidential Inauguration.
Several organizations have lauded Tischler’s design skills and dedication to floral education, including the St. Paul Blooming Program, the Minneapolis Downtown Improvement District, Koehler & Dramm and the Minnesota State Florist Association.
For AAF information, visit safnow.org/aaf.