The fruits of Jacob Albert “Jay” Kress’ dedication to gardening will live on, as will his name.
Dr. Kress, 93, of Hillsboro died Feb. 20, 2017.
He and his partner of 57 years, the late Warren Lon “Wally” Lorella, purchased a 139-acre farm in 1960 on Glade Chapel Road north of Hillsboro, eventually to became the home of the Kress Family Garden Club Preserve.
The club was established in 1998 as a nonprofit organization, and Kress/Lorella donated the farm to the club in 2000. Mr. Lorella built a clubhouse on the land and donated it to the club.
“Essentially, when the garden club started it was just a group of people who met there and they all had an interest in gardening,” said Bill Cannon, who was Dr. Kress’ guardian. “It grew into the garden club, and (Dr. Kress) had the idea, ‘We will donate it to the garden club and form a nonprofit.
“For Jay, it meant a continuation of the Kress name.”
Dr. Kress was born in Piqua, Kan., and after high school, he graduated from Jackson Business College in Chillicothe, Mo., in January 1943.
In February 1943, he was inducted into the U.S. Army and was stationed at Camp Phillips, Kan., and Jefferson Barracks, serving as company clerk, stenographer and court reporter.
After his military service, Dr. Kress did his undergraduate work at St. Louis University from 1944-1947 before going to St. Louis University Dental School from 1947-1951 and earning his doctor of dental surgery degree. During this time, he was in partnership with his father running a grocery store at 14th and Montgomery in St. Louis.
Dr. Kress operated his dental office from 1951-1977 in Concord Village in South St. Louis County, and taught at SLU and Washington University dental schools.
In addition to gardening, Dr. Kress was devoted to canines.
Randy Grim, founder of Stray Rescue of St. Louis, said he met Dr. Kress 15 years ago, thanks to their shared love of dogs.
“He got my number and he said, ‘Let’s do adoptions at Kress Farm and make it like a festival,’” Grim said. “As soon as I met him, there was a kindness about him that clicked with me in my heart. He loved all of the dogs.”
The adoption festival never happened at Kress Farm, Grim said, but the two remained in touch. Dr. Kress visited Stray Rescue, 2320 Pine St., and also made donations to Stray Rescue, Grim said.
“The first thing that pops into my mind is what a gentle, kind soul (Dr. Kress was),” Grim said. “You could tell he loved people, and he loved the dogs. He really loved people and animals.”
Dr. Kress also loved antiques. Grim said the couple’s home was full of them.
“It was like being in a museum,” Grim said. “He would know every story about every item in that house. When I saw him eight months ago, even though he had dementia, he could focus in on a certain thing and be able to tell you everything about that item.”
It was Dr. Kress’ gardening skills, however, that helped him make his mark in Jefferson County. He built a house in Antonia and moved there in 1955.
Dr. Kress had a “green thumb,” Cannon said, and he enjoyed passing his knowledge of gardening on to club members.
“He was able to impart that to other people,” Cannon said. “That was probably, in my opinion, the most positive effect he had on people. He instilled that idea of growing things – food, flowers, trees, whatever.”
While Dr. Kress’ name is on the farm, Cannon said Mr. Lorella, who died in 2015, provided financial backing and shares credit.
The garden club holds an annual plant sale, typically in May, as its main fund-raising event to bolster preservation efforts. Members also volunteer to create garden spots around the county, notably a landscaping upgrade at the Jefferson County Courthouse in 2009.
In 2013, the Kress Farm Garden Club joined with the Ozark Regional Land Trust to ensure that the Hillsboro acreage can never be developed for housing or commercial ventures.
The Ozark Regional Land Trust is the oldest land trust in the region. It started in 1983 and maintains 120 conservation easements or land preserves encompassing 26,000 acres in the Ozarks.
Through the land trust, an annual audit is conducted to ensure volunteers are living up to the agreement. If the volunteers are unable to maintain the property, ownership can be transferred to the trust.
The garden club property includes natural woods and glades along with rock gardens that Kress developed over the years. There are unusual sculptures and accessories in the gardens that draw a smile.
“To me, that (the conservation easement) is the most positive aspect that happened there,” Cannon said. “(The property) can never be developed. If I would pick out one positive thing about it, that would be the thing I would pick out.”
“Life Story,” posted each Saturday on Leader Publications’ website, focuses on one individual’s impact on his or her community.