Celebrating Former GCA President Nancy Stallworth Thomas’s 100th Birthday

One Hundred Cheers to Nancy Thomas, Living Proof that Gardeners and Naturalists Live Longer.

April 23, 2026

By: The Garden Club of Houston

Today, the Garden Club of America celebrates the 100th birthday of Nancy Stallworth Thomas, former GCA president (1991-1993).  Nancy devoted her years of leadership to the world of horticulture, conservation, and civic life. A member of The Garden Club of Houston since 1971, she has been a steady and inspiring presence. As President of the Garden Club of America, Nancy was deeply committed to fostering gardens as places of learning, stewardship, and connecting to nature.

Her early connection to nature, inspired by time spent outdoors in childhood engaging with the natural world, found lasting expression in her instrumental role in the creation of the Houston Botanic Garden. What began as an idea, informed by her travels and her understanding of what a great city can offer its citizens, became a decades-long effort to create Houston Botanic Garden,  a lasting gift to the city of Houston.

In 1995, The Garden Club of Houston established the Nancy Stallworth Thomas Horticulture Lecture Series. Held biennially in February and open to the public, the lectures reflect her belief in sharing knowledge, fostering curiosity, and bringing people together through horticulture. 

Nancy Thomas’s legacy lives not only in the institutions she has shaped, but in the countless individuals she has inspired. Nancy Thomas has made both the Garden Club of America and the city of Houston more vibrant, more beautiful, and more connected—for generations to come. Happy Birthday Nancy, forever young!