After joining the American Rose Society, I spent a decade attending my District meetings, and also the Board Meetings at the ARS National Conventions. As I learned, I also volunteered in my local rose societies.

I was very curious about the way ARS worked—why certain decisions were made, how change was brought about, how good ideas were defeated or moved forward, and what effect new ways of doing things would have on the way ARS handled the business side of things. I also found ways to bring better information and newer procedures to the members of the local rose societies.

I learned a lot, and began working within ARS to make changes that I saw as necessary for growth and the continuation of the organization.

I collected a group of like-minded people and in 1995 we created and published the ARS web site—the first hobby organization to have a presence on the World Wide Web.

Continuing to bring ARS a better way of dealing with the business side of our great hobby, I chaired the computer committee ARS OnLine, which evolved into the E.Rose Committee. This committee has oversight for computer purchases at headquarters, and we try to find great deals, discounts, and gifts of computers so our working staff can stay up-to-date.

I have served on the ARS Bylaws and Horticulture Judges committees, as well as serving as the ARS Webmaster since the web site was launched. At the present time I am also the District Director for the Northern California-Nevada-Hawaii District of the American Rose Society. This is the 3rd largest District in ARS, with 28 local society affiliates.

Graduated:

• University of Redlands, B.Sc.

Work History:

• Allergan Pharmaceuticals - Coordinator, Word Processing Center
• World Evangelism, Inc. - Manager, Word Processing/Typesetting Center
• Center for Employment Training - Supervisor/Instructor, Business Classes
• University of California, Berkeley       College of Chemistry - Supervisor, Word Processing Center,
  Manager, Computing Services

Hobbies:

• Roses!
• Dixieland Jazz

Local Rose Society Memberships:

• East Bay Rose Society
• Golden Gate Rose Society
• Mount Diablo Rose Society
• Contra Costa Rose Society

Other Affiliations:

• Northern California-Nevada-Hawaii District of ARS - District Director
• Master Gardeners - Alameda Co., CA - Web Site Developer
• California Garden Clubs Inc. - Board Member, Hort-Roses
• American Rose Society - Executive Committee Member; Webmistress
• Royal Horticultural Society
• New Orleans Dixieland Jazz Club of Northern California
• University of California Retirees Assoc.

Jolene Adams grew up loving roses.  Her grandmother and aunts all gardened with roses, and her mother enjoyed climbing and rambling roses that defined fences and gave vertical dimensions to the family garden.  As a teen, Jolene worked with her family and learned how to care for the various plants in the garden – but most of all – the roses.

Going off to College at the University of California was a ‘growing up experience’ but she still was able to enjoy roses – it turned out that the University had a large rose collection in the Botanical Garden sited on a hill above the campus.  Warm weekends would often find her there, volunteering for weeding parties, picnicking with staff members and other volunteers, and enjoying the climate of the Bay Area.

After marrying and starting a family, Jolene and her husband bought a home and began planning the garden.  Of course, it included roses!  Moving around California, the roses always went with her and were joyfully planted at each new home.  Whatever didn’t fit into the landscape went to her brother who also grew roses.

Once the children left home, Jolene became interested in the various hobby groups for gardeners and joined the area garden clubs.  Her aunt invited her to come to a rose society meeting in Pasadena, and that was the beginning of her interest in the American Rose Society.

Moving to the San Francisco Bay Area, she and her husband joined the East Bay Rose Society and ARS.  Jolene worked in her local rose society, holding many of the chairmanships and offices over the years.  She joined three more local rose societies and also worked within their groups.  She eventually became President of the Mount Diablo Rose Society and has served as Vice President for several different rose societies at different times.

Due to her experience in Information Technology while working at UC Berkeley as the Computer Resource Manager for the College of Chemistry, she helped found the ARS web site and became the Web Mistress for the American Rose Society.  She is also a Master Gardener with Alameda County in California, a Master Rosarian, an ARS Consulting Rosarian, an ARS Horticultural Judge, and the current District Director for the Northern California-Nevada-Hawaii District of the American Rose Society. She is a member of the American Rose Society, the Royal Horticultural Society, California Garden Clubs, Inc. and Livermore Amador Valley Garden Club as well as several more local rose societies in my District.

She and her husband enjoy traveling so she began attending the Regional Conferences and the Triennial Conventions of the World Federation of Rose Societies, and founded the web site for the WFRS.  She serves on several of the WFRS committees.

Jolene speaks often to small gardening groups about roses and general gardening, gives nursery seminars on growing good roses, teaches seminars for adult education about computer software applications, speaks to many of the local societies in the Northern California-Nevada-Hawaii District on a variety of 'rose' topics, and holds many offices in various rose societies. She also finds time to write for many different publications, including the ARS magazine and newspapers in the Bay Area.

Having been deeply involved with ARS for more than 15 years, Jolene has attended the ARS Board Meetings since 1994, and was elected to the ARS Executive Committee in 2007.  She has served an many different committees and has authored many of the changes ARS is undergoing as it streamlines and modernizes.

She has been awarded Distinguished Service Awards/Presidential Citations from ARS Presidents Pete Haring, Jim Hering, Tommy Cairns, Marilyn Wellan and Steve Jones. She has been awarded the Bronze Medal for Service from three different local societies.

Programs for a General Audience:

• ARS Photography Contest Winners
• ARS Web Site Winners
• A Guide to Planting Roses
• Back to Basics - Rose Care
• Chelsea Flower Show - 2003
• Classic Shrubs
• Container Gardening - flowers and vegetables
• Creative Climbers
• EarthKind Roses
• Easy Roses for a Busy Life
• Fungus Among Us
• Growing Roses in Containers
• Growing Roses from Seed
• IPM for Roses
• Monsters and Mutants
• Name that Rose
• New Rose Introductions
• Romantic Rambling Roses
• Roses - and the Meaning of Life
• Sex - and the Single Rose
• Summer Care for Roses
• Talking Trash ... Composting!
• The Romance of the Rose
• Tigers in the Garden
• Games for local society meetings
  • ARS Trivia
  • Roses Trivia
  • Roses Crosswords
  • Garden Dilemma Quizes

Programs for Judging School and Seminars:

• Classic Shrubs
• Guidelines for Judging Challenge Classes and Collections
• Judging Sprays
• Staging Challenges for the Show
• Ethics

Programs for CR Schools and Seminars, Garden Club Workshops:

• Chemical Safety
• Diseases of Roses
• IPM for Roses
• Pests of Roses
• Summer Care

Hands-on demonstrations and short workshops:

• Composting in an Urban Environment
• Grooming and Staging Your Roses
• Heat Stress in Roses
• Hip, Hip, Hooray!
• Growing Roses From Seeds
• Summer Care
• Own Root vs. Grafted

Jolene can also tailor a program to suit you needs. She travels in the U.S. to give lectures, seminars, workshops and rose-related programs - invite her some time to speak to your group!

• Established a web site for ARS
• Chair of the E.Rose Committee (for computer related activities) - secured donations of new computers for ARS
• Chair for the Annual ARS Web Site Contest
• Added CR and Judges listings to ARS web site so people could find judges for their shows and CRs in their area
• Part of the process to move Rose Registrations to the web site
• Implemented adding the ARS Store to the web site
• Reviewed the shipping and handling charges - and had them adjusted to 'standards' in the industry
• On the committee to review ARS Bylaws and bring about changes
• Part of the process to implement voting on the internet
• Put the ARS Quarterly publications on the ARS web site
• Publisher of the ARS & You
• Serving on the Long-range Strategic Planning Committee
• Served on the Publications Committee of the World Federation of Roses
• Part of the process to review and update the Judging Guidelines

International Activities

Webmaster for the World Federation of Roses - 1998-1999

ARS Delegate to World Federation of Roses - 2003, 2006, 2009

Judged Tokyo Rose Show - 2006

Judged Hampton Court Rose Show - 2003

Judged International Rose Trials -
      Portland - 2001
      Glasgow - 2003
      Rose Hills - 2003
      Rose Hills - 2008

National Activities

Webmaster for the American Rose Society Home Page - 1995 to present

Chair of the ARS E.Rose Committee

Member of the ARS Society Relations Committee

Member of the ARS Bylaws Committee

Member of the ARS Long Range Strategic Planning Committee

ARS Horticulture Judge

ARS Consulting Rosarian

Publisher of ARS & You

ARS Master Rosarian

Board Member - Rose Chair, California Garden Clubs, Inc.

Master Gardener - Alameda Co., CA

Web site for Master Gardners - Over the Fence articles

District Activities

Webmaster for the NCNH District - 1996-2003

District Outstanding Consulting Rosarian, 2000

Editor, The Criterion 1995 - 1997, Gold Medal for Best District Bulletin in 1997

District Director - 2003 to present

District Bylaws Committee - 2004

Local Activities

Secretary, East Bay Rose Society - 1993 and 1994

Co-Rose Show Chair for the East Bay Rose Society - 1994 and 2003

Fall Rose Show Chair, East Bay RS - 1997 to present

Roses in Review Local Coordinator, East Bay Rose Society - 1994 thru 1997

Editor for East Bay Rose Society The Florosia - 1995 through 2003

Editor for Golden Gate Rose Society Rose Consultant - May 1995 through June 2002

Chair of Judges for Mount Diablo Rose Society - 1996 through 2003

Chair of Judges for Golden Gate Rose Society - 2001 through 2003

Chair of Judges for East Bay Rose Society - 2007, 2008

Director, East Bay Rose Society - 1996, 1997 and 2004 - 2005

Vice President, East Bay Rose Society - 2007, 2008

President for Mount Diablo Rose Society - 1998 and 1999

Consulting Rosarian Coordinator, East Bay Rose Society - 1998 to 2003

Consulting Rosarian Coordinator, Golden Gate Rose Society - 1999 to 2003

Home Depot Liaison, East Bay Rose Society - 2002 - 2008

Bronze Medal - Golden Gate Rose Society - 1997
Bronze Medal - East Bay Rose Society - 1998
Bronze Medal - Mount Diablo Rose Society - 2000

Webmaster - East Bay Rose Society (continuous)

Professional Experience

Computer Resource Manager for UC Berkeley, College of Chemistry (retired)

Webmaster for Computing Services, College of Chemistry (retired)

Personal

Jolene grows over 150 roses of all types - climbers, OGRs, Minis and Minifloras, Hybrid Teas, Grandifloras, Floribundas, Polyanthas, Austins, Romanticas, Modern and Classic Shrubs.

She lectures widely on computing issues, general gardening topics and on roses.

She fell in love with roses as a teenager and hasn’t gotten over it.

Married to Jacob Oberlies Jr. since 1985
Three children, three step-children
Nine grandchildren
One cat who thinks he’s ‘children’