We’d like to show our appreciation

Video of Friends of Trees’ first annual Leaf Rake event on December 4.

By Brighton West

At Friends of Trees, we do a lot of asking: donations, memberships, sponsorships, free coffee, volunteering, etc. But I was reflecting recently on how we give back to the community. Yes, we plant trees and bring folks together, but what else have we done this year?

1) 100% of Friends of Trees staff gave to the Willamette Week Give!Guide—not just to Friends of Trees, but to other nonprofits like Audubon Society of Portland, NW Documentary, BTA, Community Cycling Center, Disjecta, Basic Rights Education Fund, Portland Fruit Tree Project, and Forest Park Conservancy;
2) FOT sponsored the Loaves and Fishes Jambalaya Lunch and the Mississippi Street Fair;
3) We raked the leaves of homebound seniors with Loaves and Fishes;
4) We loaned trees to the PDX Bridge Fest, the PDX Gulf Coast Benefit, and Camp Cascadia;
5) We loaned tools to Depave, Urban Farm Collective, Growing Gardens, the Tsunami Crew and SMYRC;
6) We donated extra supplies and materials to SCRAP and The Rebuilding Center.

Of course, we’ve enjoyed every bit of it! We love working with like-minded community groups to further our mission of bringing neighbors together to improve the lives of others in their community.

Thank you to all who helped with these events–and to all who have made our city greener by planting trees with us.

–West is Program Director for Friends of Trees