Two unmistakable signs of spring sprung this weekend – first was the slight flush of red maple buds I saw on Friday evening in my local park as I was playing baseball with my son. The second was early this morning as I arrived at our Casey Trees offices here in Brookland – dozens of daffodil flowers sat atop their green stalks that had slowly emerged over the past few weeks. To see the beauty of our natural environment slowly come to life has been comforting, and I look forward to more signs of spring to come – especially some green leaves.

This past year, particularly this past winter, has been challenging for everyone. As local pandemic restrictions slowly begin to lift, there’s renewed hope in the air that we’ll be able to reconnect with friends and family in the months to come.

At Casey Trees, we share that hope while remaining ever vigilant, especially for our field staff who have continued to work outside throughout the pandemic, safely and with little disruption. We will once again miss the typical rigorous springtime calendar of planting, education, and related volunteer events, but the trees will still get planted. Our planting operations never stopped – continuing throughout the winter as the ground never froze – an unusual situation that has become more common in our warming climate.

Despite these precautions, however, we will still be offering some limited-attendance activities in the coming months. Of note, several tree identification classes are on deck, accompanied by the unveiling of our new DC-focused tree species guide. Also available will be a handful of limited-attendance planting opportunities for pre-trained Citizen Foresters who know the ropes and; a remote but still engaging Arbor Day Celebration that I hope you will join us in.

The experiences over the past year have allowed us at Casey Trees to learn, firsthand, many lessons, most important of which is that we remain committed to the safety of our employees and – by extension – our volunteers. From all of us at Casey Trees – please accept my thanks for your continued support, encouragement, and engagement.

Stay safe and be well,

Mark Buscaino
Executive Director