Three Cheers to Our Volunteers!

August 16, 2016

Did you know TreePeople hosts a Volunteer Celebration? It’s true! Each year, we invite our most dedicated volunteers up to our park for a day of fun to show our thanks.

This year featured our first ever TreePeople Volunteer Olympic Games! Rio has nothing on this. The day was warm and the stakes were high as volunteers gave their all competing in events like: the Tree Stake Ring Ross, Tree Tie Noodle Dance, Mulch Bucket Stacking and TreePeople Trivia Pong. Volunteers brought their A game facing off in these silly events for a chance to take home the gold.

28329287132_4dc96eacda_k

We also served an entirely drought-friendly vegan menu. As we trod into a fifth year of crippling drought it is critical to reduce our impact and make a difference. One of the easiest ways to make a dent in the drought and fight the effects of climate change is to choose plant based foods whenever you can. Luckily, our friends at Beyond Meat donated some delicious “chicken” to give our volunteers some plant powered fuel during the games!

We’re in awe. On any given day across Los Angeles, TreePeople volunteers are working in communities to  create a more livable, shaded city for everyone.

27861751965_cebb9247d2_k

Here’s a snapshot. So far in 2016, 4,000 volunteers have planted 519 trees and cared for more than 2,600 trees. They’ve shared with thousands of Angelenos how to live more sustainably at more than 30 events. We want to create a climate-resilient LA, but we could never do it without our amazing community.

Change comes in many forms. So we send thanks to all of our amazing volunteers– like our Outreach Volunteers, who could be tabling at a music festival, farmers market or community event sharing our mission. Or our dedicated Office Volunteers who help mission control here in Yurt Village run smoothly. To our Coldwater Park Volunteers who work tirelessly every week to care and maintain our park trees and trails for all to enjoy. We thank our Forestry Volunteers  who work across our region’s parks, schools, and neighborhoods planting and caring for trees to grow a green LA.

Our volunteers do so much to support our vision, and it’s likely that one of ours has made an impact on your neighborhood.

Ready to dig in? Join us for an event near you. Together we can  transform Los Angeles into a greener, cooler place to live!

By Peter Roquemore

Peter Roquemore is TreePeople's Volunteer Manager. Peter has spent the past six years organizing communities around renewable energy, energy efficiency, and clean water. He is excited to be working side by side with TreePeople's volunteers to help grow and restore our urban forest and wild lands. New to Los Angeles you can find Peter on his bike exploring LA's streets and mountain trails or tracking down LA's best vegan taco.