For me it really always comes down to our amazing volunteers. And while staff often end up volunteering extra hours and days for the cause too, it's the people who never recieve a pay cheque that keep me truly inspired. Their enthusiasm and tenacity in our planting and stewardship, or when it comes to spreading the word on what's up in the urban forest is just what we need. They help us continue to grow and take our programs in fresh directions and across to new communities.
Here is a video that combines the efforts of a lot of our volunteers -- compiled by Rachel MacDonald, using photos taken at last year's Night of the Forest event by Kanchan Maharaj and Calvin Kuo, music by Will Whitwham, and the voices of a number of Tree Tenders grads talking about why the urban forest is important to them....
This is exactly the reason I got involved with LEAF, and part of what has kept me here for the past 3 years. Take a look, and come out to the big event - you never know how you can help us grow!
