EatonvilleNews


	*"Seek Truth Without Fear"*		"If the freedom of speech is taken away then dumb and silent we may be led, like sheep to the slaughter." George Washington
	*Wildcat Woods Dedication* (photo by Bob Walter) *Weyerhaeuser Kids Celebrate Arbor Day and Wildcat Woods Which They Planted...* (photo by Bob Walter) April 25, 2008 - Story and Videos by Bob Walter: A forty-acre tract of meadow adjacent to Weyerhaeuser Elementary was the scene of celebration Friday morning. On a beautiful spring day, in serpentine fashion, the entire student body made its way up the path to Wildcat Woods. Though not actually a forest just yet, the meadow now supports 1,000 tree seedlings, planted by the students themselves. The project was made possible through a partnership between Eatonville School District, Washington State University Cooperative Extension/Pierce County 4-H, City of Tacoma, Youth Connection and the Department of Natural Resources. Garry Anderson, a county extension employee, was the project coordinator. Watch Video of Circle Circle Video *Circle of Life* (photo by Bob Walter) April 25, 2008 - story and videos by Bob Walter: The Weyerhaeuser students assembled in a huge circle, perhaps 200 feet across, symbolizing the Native American "Circle of Life." Everywhere around them were tiny flags waving in the breeze, each one indicating, by its color, the type of tree planted there. There are Douglas firs, noble firs, grand firs, lodgepole pines and willows. In the future there will also be western red cedars, Sitka spruce and red alders. School principal Pam Burke asked the kids to imagine visiting this site with their grandchildren many years from now, when they could gaze upward and say, "I planted that tree." Anderson praised the students for their hard work, and talked about the large variety of wildlife inhabiting this natural area, pointing out how these animals -- salamanders, tree frogs, mammals and nearly 20 species of birds, to name a few -- will benefit from the forest just beginning to grow. Three bluebird next boxes, erected on surrounding fence posts, are now attracting courting pairs of bluebirds. There are plans for the site to become a living science laboratory for students of today and tomorrow. Watch Garry Anderson video Anderson and Weyerhaeuser Wildlife The school population has taken a positive step in reducing their carbon footprint, by nurturing trees that will suck carbon dioxide out of the air for decades. The project has helped the students to learn about the value trees to people, animals and the earth, and how an investment in environmental stewardship today will reap dividends for many years to come. For more about the great Wildcat Woods project please see story below this article. *In the Future - A Natural Science Classroom* (photo by Bob Walter) Among the future plans for the area is the enhancement of existing wetlands. To this end the students have started putting willow "sticks" in the wetlands grounds. Willows love moisture and usually take root quickly. Trees are the largest and oldest living organisms on Earth and are vital to life. Please see below. *More Important Tree Facts...* Hospital patients heal faster, require shorter stays and less painkillers if room windows face trees. A tree-line buffer between fields and streams helps remove farming pollutants before they reach the water. *Trees increase property values by 5 to 20% due to their landscaping value In 50 years one tree recycles more than $37,000 worth of water, provides $31,000 worth of erosion control, $62,000 worth of air pollution control, and produces $37,000 worth of oxygen. Two mature trees provide enough oxygen for a family of four. Trees are good noise barriers, making a city and neighborhood quieter. Tiny Tree Becomes Part of Wildcat Woods...* (photo by Bob Walter) One of a thousand trees planted by Weyerhaeuser Elementary students this diminutive Douglas fir seedling will one day shade the area, provide shelter for wildlife, a home for birds and help keep the air clean. Please see below for Wildcat Woods project and more information about why we need trees for our environment. *Weyerhaeuser Elementary to Celebrate Arbor Day Friday* (photo by Brenda Waters) Weyerhaeuser kids planted 1,000 trees for Earth Week. There will be a ceremony Friday, April 25, Arbor Day, to dedicate close to six acres of newly planted trees in "Wildcat Woods." Pictured above is 4-H leader Garry Anderson with students planting one of four different species on conifer trees. *"Wildcat Woods" Dedication...* *April 22, 2008* On Friday, April 25 - Arbor Day - Weyerhaeuser Elementary School students will hold a ceremony to dedicate the 1,000 trees they have planted in honor of 4-H's national "Plant a Million Trees" for Earth Week. Led by Gary Anderson, Pierce County 4-H Forestry Education Coordinator, 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students have worked diligently after school to accomplish their goal. Each classroom at Weyerhaeuser had the opportunity to plant trees, giving every student ownership of the project. Students named their 5.75 acres of newly planted trees, "Wildcat Woods," and will hold a dedication ceremony on Friday at 10 a.m. The public is encouraged to attend. *The First Arbor Day...* J. Sterling Morton a Nebraska pioneer, journalist and editor of Nebraska's first newspaper is the man who came up with the idea for Arbor Day. Nebraska lacked trees and Morton proposed a "tree-planting holiday" for April 10, 1872. Prizes were given to the counties and people who planted the most trees on Arbor Day. History reports that more than one million trees were planted in Nebraska that first tree-planting holiday. *Trees Help in Many and Unexpected Ways...* In the March 2008 issue of University of Washington's Alumni Magazine, "Columns," Sandra Hines writes, "American Forests, a Washington, D.C., nonprofit, found that America’s largest cities have lost more than a quarter of their tree canopies since 1972. In Seattle, the city’s urban forester Mark Mead, says that 18 percent of the city has canopy cover, down from 40 percent just 35 years ago. That’s about half of what is recommended for a city of its size, according to American Forests. Hines points out the noticeable benefits of trees in urban areas, "...trees and green spaces help reduce stormwater runoff," and tells of one study which "found that the canopy of a single, leafy, 38-foot-tall tree intercepts and holds rainwater, reducing runoff by 290 gallons." Trees remove pollutants from air and water, breath carbon dioxide, exhale oxygen and provide cooling in concrete and asphalt jungles reducing temperatures up to 10 degrees Fahrenheit. People in business districts were willing to pay up to 12 percent more for the same products if there were large trees in the business district. Neighborhoods with more greenery, trees, grass and other plants which were studied and found to have less domestic disputes, less fear, less crime and better interactions between neighbors. Neighborhoods with more trees and greenery were more conducive people walking as they judged distance as less even when walking distances were the same. Another study in Tokyo found elderly people in green neighborhoods were healthier and had a lower mortality rate during a five-year-period. *Not Enough Being Done in Evergreen State* In 2000 the Washington Department of Natural Resources found that only 10 percent of Washington communities had up-to-date tree inventories; only 12 percent had management plans, with the rest having no "clear goals and objectives for tree care; about 20 percent do routine tree care with the rest failing to replace removed trees and improper pruning. Even communities with tree ordinances - 47 percent - don't enforce the laws very well. Read the entire story at Shade Crusade: Why City Trees Are Good Medicine - Then plant more trees this Arbor Day and every other day. Kids *Making Teddy Roosevelt Proud...* (photo by Garry Anderson) Students from 3rd grade prepare to plant trees. In 1907 President Teddy Roosevelt wrote a proclamation to the school children of America about Arbor Day and the need for thinking about the "Nation's need for trees..." Roosevelt's words, 101 years later are, perhaps, more timely than ever. Weyerhaeuser kids, shown nurturing trees, would make him proud. Read the short proclamation To the Children of the United States Back to Top Back to Front Page





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