A Weekly Note from Mayor Gary L. Graham
“Traditional Values, Progressive Thinking”
The City of O’Fallon has once again been named a Tree City USA. The City has received this national recognition for the past nine years. It is a great honor for the City of O’Fallon to receive this national award. The award reflects the City’s dedication to urban forestry and recognizes the tireless work of our residents who volunteer their time to keep our City looking green.
In observance of Arbor Day, the O’Fallon Parks and Recreation Department and the Urban Forestry Commission will be holding an Arbor Day celebration on Saturday, April 21st at Community Park. Girl Scouts from Troop 392, of Neighborhood 201, will be planting several trees at 10 a.m. Anyone interested in participating is welcome to join us. In addition, trees will be planted at LaVerna Evans School on April 16th, as part of their Arbor Day & Earth Day Celebration.
Tree City USA recognition from The National Arbor Day Foundation, which is a non-profit educational organization, is a symbol of how important our community trees are to us. The National Arbor Day Foundation was founded in 1972 to help people plant and care for trees. Today the Foundation has grown into a national membership organization that distributed eight million trees to its members last year alone. To become a Tree City USA, a community must have a tree care ordinance, a legal tree governing body, a comprehensive urban forestry program and an Arbor Day observance.
It is a real honor for O’Fallon to receive the Tree City USA award and is yet another example of why O’Fallon is such a great community in which to live. Residents who have an interest in urban forestry and wish to serve on the City’s Urban Forestry Commission or to volunteer should call the Parks and Recreation Department at 624-0139.
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