Nov 3, 2021
DON'T FORGET TREE-PLANTING EVENT THIS SATURDAY!
The weather for the weekend looks good, and the Shepherdstown tree-planting event that was rained out last Saturday is definitely on for this Saturday, November 6.
The event will be held Elmwood Cemetery and Morgan's Grove Park from 10:00 am to about 12 noon.
The work will be easy (an auger will already have been used to dig the holes for the trees), so this will be a fun and educational family event and family groups with children are welcome. Tools will be provided, along with coffee and donuts.
The event will begin at the Cemetery, which is located on Duke Street (Rte. 480), on the south side of Shepherdstown, across from the Middle School. No pre-registration is required, and volunteers should simply plan to meet at the Cemetery gate on Duke Street by 10:00 a.m. Afterwards, everyone will move to the planting sites within the cemetery. When the tree-plantings there are finished, everyone will make the short drive south on 480 to Morgan's Grove Park to plant trees there. Four trees will be planted at each property, for a total of eight trees in all.
Last year, everyone who participated was required to follow the West Virginia coronavirus guidelines that were in effect at the time, and wear masks and practice social distancing. Those guidelines are no longer in effect for outdoor events, and there will be no such requirements this year. However, those who prefer to wear masks should do so.
The event is a partnership between the Rotary Club of Shepherdstown; the Shepherdstown Community Club, which owns Morgan's Grove Park; Elmwood Cemetery; and the Cacapon Institute, a nonprofit watershed-protection organization headquartered in Morgan County. The Rotary Club has organized the event. The Cacapon Institute is donating the trees and providing technical advice.
The goal is to help beautify the Cemetery and the Park, reduce storm-water runoff from both properties, and increase local public awareness about the importance of planting and protecting trees in urban environments.
This will be the fourth year in a row the event has been held. During the first two years, it was just held at the Cemetery. The accompanying photo shows some of the people who turned out for the 2019 tree-planting.
For more information contact Shepherdstown Rotary Club member Lois Turco at loist247@comcast.net or 304-876-9141.