On November 18, 2019 just one week after the 25th annual Mount Dora Plant & Garden Fair, the matriarch and founder of the festival, Christine Cole passed away after a long illness. She will be missed but her spirit & the festival will live on. Because of her dedication to the Plant & Garden Fair, the City of Mount Dora planted a magnolia tree in Simpson’s Cove and her ashes were placed there by her husband and dedicated partner, Gene Packwood.