As the vibrant sunlight shone brilliantly on calm waters of the Bronx River, it traveled up to the south-end bank of shoelace park, T.O.P Soccer’s designated planting area. Approximately, 40 patrons, some as young as three years old, were in attendance with brown spades and white garden gloves. Families, friends, children and Bronx River Alliance staff were all hands-on deck, ready to take on the collaborative task of planting a whopping 124 saplings.
A sapling is a young tree with a slender trunk that filters air pollution and produces oxygen. More importantly, the saplings, when fully mature, will help reduce flooding of the Bronx River but more importantly assist with combating global warming.
Patrons dug symmetrical holes and placed saplings into their new homes. There were even a few earthworm encounters, which the children found to be intriguing and even began building mini-worm homes for their new-found friends. The adults who volunteered, exhibited signs of euphoria as they expressed delight with being integrated into a meaningful and uplifting community outreach event.
There is an old adage, which implies a tree cannot be bent when fully matured, instead the tree must be bent while it is a plant (or sapling). Today’s community outreach planting event typifies the significance of investing in and empowering our youth. For they represent the plants that can grow into upright trees our world needs.