Westmont, Manning Elementary School celebrate Arbor Day

WESTMONT – The Village of Westmont gave J.T. Manning Elementary School a gift Friday that will last for generations.

In celebration of Arbor Day, the Westmont Public Works Department purchased two emerald sunshine elm trees and a London plane tree for $150 a piece from Spring Grove Nursery, then led a presentation and tree planting ceremony Friday alongside Manning students and teachers.

Village Forester Jonathan Yeater spoke to the students about the significance and history of Arbor Day, the inherent benefits of trees and led the children through the correct way to plant a tree. Each student then took a turn shoveling dirt on the emerald sunshine elm.

His 12th year as village forester, Yeater said it’s important for students to engage in hands-on learning activities to aid their understanding of trees and the environment.

“I think this is something unique and different that a lot of students don’t often get to participate in,” Yeater said. “It’s important for kids to get their hands dirty and make that physical connection.”

The Arbor Day ceremony was the culmination of Earth Week at Manning Elementary School. Before the tree planting, students studied the different trunks, limbs, bark, branches, leaves and other tree parts and worked with the garden club on several Arbor Day activities. Some students even learned a native Cherokee song, performing it during the tree planting with music teacher Chris Heroldt.

“This is a fun day for our students,” Manning Elementary School Principal Kristin Krestel said. “They get to make a real-life connection to what they have been learning in the classroom. This is not an annual thing for us. The last time the village planted an Arbor Day tree here was 2008.”

Every year, the village of Westmont leads the tree planting ceremony at different local school in order to maintain accreditation with Tree City USA – The Arbor Day Foundation, according to Yeater.

Additionally, the village gave away free seedlings during Earth Week to residents who wanted to plant new trees in the community.

“The seedling program has been very successful,” Yeater said. “We handed out over 600 seedlings this year.”