Bring friends, some sturdy shoes and join the planting party! It’s time to celebrate Green Everett Day, Saturday, Oct. 18, from 9 a.m. to noon at Thornton A. Sullivan Park located on Silver Lake at 11405 W. Silver Lake Rd.
Event organizers are expecting more than 100 volunteers, of all ages and abilities, to dig in and show support for the Green Everett Partnership’s vision for a healthy, sustainable urban forest and parkland. Everett is the first city in Snohomish County to become a Green City Partner.
“We want to celebrate our goals and accomplishments to date and kick off the planting season,” said Joanna Nelson de Flores, Green City program director at Forterra.
A welcome speech will begin at 9 a.m. on the Camp Patterson lawn, followed by a brief, small-group training session. Volunteers will then work together to plant 500 to 700 native shrubs, groundcovers and trees in the forested area near Silver Lake. Sno-Isle Natural Foods Co-op and Zippy’s Café will provide snacks and refreshments, and the Green Everett Partnership will provide gloves and tools, including child-sized shovels.
Green Everett Day is a great opportunity for volunteers to have an impact on the long-term health of the city’s green spaces. Cari Krippner, a forest steward at Thornton A. Sullivan Park, recognizes the lasting benefits of contributing to this kind of event.
“I always tell people you can come back and say, ‘See this tree right here? I planted this!’ I do this for the generations to come,” Krippner said.
Nelson de Flores encourages high school students to take part for community service credit, and said that families with children can “come put a few plants in the ground and just enjoy being outside together.” A supervising adult must accompany youth under the age of 18. Everyone should dress for the weather and wear long pants and closed-toe shoes.
Green Everett Day is part of the fall Green City Days series, which is expected to attract more than 2,000 participants from across the Puget Sound region to celebrate the benefits of urban green spaces. The Green Everett Partnership created a 20-year Forest Management Plan to restore 354 acres of forested parkland throughout the city by engaging and mobilizing individuals, neighborhoods, nonprofits, businesses and governments. Learn more at www.everettwa.org/default.aspx?ID=2078.
The Partnership formed in 2012, when the City of Everett partnered with Forterra to join Seattle, Tacoma, Kirkland, Kent and Redmond in Forterra’s Green Cities Network. Forterra works with local nonprofits, community groups, city agencies, neighborhood leaders, and local businesses to support healthy urban green spaces for the future of our region through the Green City Partnerships program. Learn more about Green City Partnerships at www.forterra.org/greencities.
Green Everett Day is just the beginning, so join the effort! Come have fun, feel good and get your hands dirty. RSVP by email to: greeneverett@forterra.org. For more information about the event, contact Joanna Nelson de Flores at Forterra: 425-238-0065.
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October 17, 2014
Events in Everett, Everett