Thanks to TreePhilly’s new Community Yard Tree Giveaway Grants, Esperanza was able to give away 90 trees to community members this week.
Through these grants, TreePhilly hopes to “empower community groups to help restore Philly’s urban forest.” Because of generous support and funding from the Fairmount Park Conservancy and Wells Fargo, TreePhilly provided community groups with 50 trees and $500 – a $2000 value – to host yard tree giveaways in their neighborhoods this fall.
Other participating groups include Fleischer Art Memorial, Berachah Baptist Church with Philadelphia Urban Roots Collective, Urban Tree Connection, New Kensington Community Development Corporation and East Kensington Neighbors Association.
On Tuesday, October 7th, and Thursday, October 9th, Esperanza held FREE Tree Giveaways with an unprecedented turnout in the Hunting Park area. Planting trees and shrubs can increase the value of a property and decrease energy bills. Esperanza is proud to do their part in not only beautifying our neighborhood, but also improving the environment.
“To facilitate a tree giveaway in the community means a lot to Esperanza. The greening of Hunting Park is an important part of our 2022 Neighborhood plan. We understand the importance of revitalizing our community by promoting the planting of trees that will, in the future, provide a cleaner, greener and healthier life to our residents. This giveaway, in partnership with Tree Philly, gave us the opportunity to be 90 trees closer to this goal,” said Gabriella Paez, STEM Program Assistant.
Esperanza’s Executive Director of Economic Development, Perfecta Oxholm said, “’He who plants a tree plants hope.’ By distributing nearly 90 trees in two days, Esperanza is helping to plant hope in Hunting Park.”