10 | July/August 2014
M
ore than 700 volunteers participated in
United Way's Day of Caring by lending
a hand to beautify a local park for Arbor Day.
Volunteers, including DRG's own Dean
Powell, consulting utility forester at the Fort
Smith, Ark., location, spent an entire April
day planting 22 trees for a new park in the city
of Mulberry, including maples, mulberries,
dogwoods and junipers. In addition to the trees,
donated funds from Oklahoma Gas & Electric
(OG&E) provided new flower beds, a park
sign and landscaping around the sign.
Powell continued his efforts at the annual
Beautify Fort Smith Spring Cleanup and Tree
Giveaway event by collaborating with its
creators to add something new, a tree giveaway.
"We encouraged the community to help pick
up trash," he says. "When they returned with a
bag of trash, we gave them a free 3-gallon tree."
"We gave away all 100 trees we had," Powell
says, discussing the event's success. "Anytime
you have a day like this that encourages litter
One Volunteer Can Make a Difference
pick up or planting trees, it positively affects
the community. It promotes economic and
social growth within the community. Projects
W
hen the community recognizes trees are
important, it shows they think our profession
is important, too."
This comes from Jay Maier, founder and
district manager of Maier Tree & Lawn, a
recently acquired Davey company. Recognizing
the importance of trees in the community is
just one of the reasons Maier Tree & Lawn
celebrates Arbor Day annually. This year, the
company continued its tradition of participat-
ing in Rochester Public Utilities' (RPU) Arbor
Day celebration, which is in its 12th year. In
fact, Maier and Patty Hanson of RPU have
collaborated since 2002 to bring school-aged
children and the general public together to
celebrate the most important aspect of Arbor
Day, the community's beloved trees. The
celebration is complete with live music, tree
experts, poster contests and various family
activities, including tree climbing for kids.
"The tree climbing event is my favorite
part of the day," Maier says. "We set the kids
up with hard hats and harnesses and have an
arborist in the tree to help them. It's great to
watch them touch the tree, get the feel for
climbing and talk to them about the importance
of the tree."
Kids Get the Feel for Arbor Day
Justin Madsen applies a temporary
tattoo to a participant of RPU's
Arbor Day celebration.
Josh Jobes helps a child partici-
pate in a tree climbing event.
''
like this allow us to shine, show the community
what we are doing and provide valuable
information that people can take with them."
Dean Powell (far left, in black) joins OG&E Community Affairs Manager Rob Ratley
(third from left), OG&E Community Relations Coordinator Dana Craig (second
from right) and other volunteers for a group photo.
Arbor Day 2014
