Esperanza continued an annual tradition on Friday, Oct. 25, during the Wyoming Avenue Fall Fest and Tree Giveaway. Over 150 neighbors gathered at the Wyoming Library and enjoyed music, face painting, and food. 100 of them went home with a free tree to plant in their yard or on their block.
“Distributing 100 trees this fall has gotten us closer to our goal of increasing the canopy coverage in Hunting Park to 30% from 3.6% back in 2014,” said Gabriella Paez, EHED Education and Community Development Coordinator at Esperanza. “Trees do not only beautify our neighborhood, but they also make it cleaner and healthier.”
The Giveaway is a partnership between Esperanza, the Wyoming Library, and TreePhilly designed to increase the number of trees in Hunting Park and the surrounding neighborhoods. According to TreePhilly, trees provide both individual and communal benefits, like increasing shade coverage that lowers energy and cooling costs and improving water and air quality.
Esperanza has hosted a tree giveaway each year since 2014, handing out around 600 trees to Philadelphians.