The 36th Annual Turf and Ornamental Communicators Association (TOCA) Meeting was held from April 29 to May 1, 2025, in Charleston, SC. The event brought together green industry professionals from across the country for three days of education, networking and professional development.
Educational Programming
The conference featured a dynamic lineup of sessions focused on communication strategy, industry insight and skill development. Brandon Bell, M.Ed., North America Diversity and Inclusion Lead at Syngenta, opened with a session on the value of inclusive communication in today’s workplace. Jon Greenberg, faculty member at the Poynter Institute and founder of Beat Academy, followed with two practical writing workshops—one on simplifying complex topics and another on tools for stronger storytelling. Communication coach and professor John Patrick (JP) led a session on navigating high-stakes conversations, highlighting how habits can either strengthen or undermine a communicator’s message.
Attendees explored the historic grounds of Middleton Place, learning about its 18th-century gardens and horticultural care from longtime groundskeeper Sidney Frazier.
Attendees explored Middleton Place on Wednesday afternoon. Located along the Ashley River, Middleton is a National Historic Landmark and home to America's oldest landscaped gardens. Sidney Frazier, Vice President of Horticulture, shared his experience maintaining the 18th-century property for over 50 years, beginning as a teenager. The group learned about plant care practices, preservation efforts and the historical significance of the site, once home to a signer of the Declaration of Independence.
Cecilia Johnson moderated the sod panel featuring Hank Kerfoot, Aaron Tipton and K.C. Bell.
On Thursday, the Behind the Sod panel featured Hank Kerfoot, President and Founder of Modern Turf; Aaron Tipton, Grounds Supervisor at the College of Charleston; and K.C. Bell, Senior Director of Athletic Grounds at Clemson University. The panel offered insight into field-level turfgrass decisions, covering management practices, college and customer expectations and what it takes to work with grass every day.
Scott Covelli and Valerie Smith lead the AI Roundtable discussion.
To close the education program, Valerie Smith and Scott Covelli led an interactive session on how communicators use artificial intelligence to support writing, editing and creative development. Attendees rotated between tables in small groups, each tackling a different AI-focused prompt before sharing their takeaways with the larger group.
Receptions and Recognition
Evening events included a welcome reception at King Street Dispensary, sponsored by GIE Media and North Coast Media, and a silent auction and gathering at Prohibition hosted by Hunter Industries, both featuring delicious food and drinks. The conference wrapped with the TOCA Awards Banquet on Thursday evening, which included dinner, the Hall of Fame induction and the annual Communications Contest Awards program.
Sod Solutions received 13 TOCA Communication Awards, including a Gardner Award for top overall entry in the 2025 contest. The team earned honors in a range of categories, reflecting the strength of its ongoing marketing, content and design efforts.
Cecilia Johnson, Valerie Smith and Matt Novak hold the 13 TOCA Communications Awards the Sod Solutions team received.
First Place Awards:
- Website Design – Digital Design
- Trade Show Booth Design – Island Booth
- Writing for Printed Collateral
- Writing for a Newsletter – Original Content
Merit Awards:
- Best Long Video (More than 2 Minutes)
- Writing for Printed Collateral
- Writing a News Release
- Writing a Feature Article
- Writing for Company Website – Original Content
- Writing for a Newsletter – Original Content
- Branding – Written Brand Identity Elements
Gardner Award – Best of the Best:
- Category: Writing for Printed Collateral
Cecilia Johnson and Valerie Smith hold their awards after being named the 2025 TOCA Volunteers of the Year.
Sod Solutions team members Cecilia Johnson and Valerie Smith were also recognized as the 2025 TOCA Volunteers of the Year for their contributions to planning this year’s conference.
The 37th Annual TOCA Meeting will be held April 28–30, 2026, at the Hyatt Regency Cleveland at the Arcade in Cleveland, Ohio.
