A remembrance of Joanne Schuler

By Kate Farrington

One day in 1996, Joanne Schuler walked into the Friends of Trees office and offered to help. So began a relationship of a decade and a half as a Friends of Trees member, volunteer, donor, and friend.

Joanne was a joy to have around the office. “Joanne always walked in with a smile and a hug,” said Friends of Trees Office Manager Mary Harrell.

Joanne was a very sociable person and made friends easily with other volunteers in the office. Not only was she fun to be around, but she immediately made herself invaluable around the office with her organizational skills.

Back then, Friends of Trees was a much smaller organization with a very small office and very little storage space. Joanne set to work cleaning and organizing the space, setting up filing systems and organizing and putting into binders all of Friends of Trees’ news articles and newsletters.

Joanne was a part of many big transitions in the office, helping with the first membership mailing and the first mailing for a Friends of Trees event. She also helped Friends of Trees staff pack and move to 2831 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, where Friends of Trees was located before moving to its current address at 3117 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.

In addition to donating her time, Joanne contributed to Friends of Trees financially. Every year she bought items for the office, such as towels, pictures, and supplies for planting projects. She supported Friends of Trees as a member for more than 15 years and helped at many Friends of Trees events.

Even at the end of her life, Joanne contributed to Friends of Trees. In her will, she left Friends of Trees more than $10,000.

Thank you, Joanne, for your generous support for so many years. You are truly missed.

–Farrington is Neighborhood Trees Specialist for Friends of Trees.