THE LEAFLET

At Casey Trees, volunteers are the heart of our mission, powering our efforts to restore, enhance, and protect the tree canopy in Washington, DC, and beyond. Among these incredible volunteers stands a remarkable group that sports red vests and takes on leadership roles at nearly every event. These are our team leaders—dedicated individuals who have completed specialized training to lead volunteer groups during tree plantings, care events, invasive species removals, and more.

We recently had the chance to catch up with a few of these standout leaders to hear about their experiences, favorite memories, and what inspires them to keep giving back.

Kevin Kelso – A Canopy Protector

Favorite Team Leader Memory?
Not fair! That’s like choosing your favorite child! If I had to name one, it would be the planting of the allée of Jefferson Elms along the road that leads to the CT Tree Farm. It must have been around 2010 or so. It was my first time at the farm, and the weather was perfect. It was great fun. We had a chartered bus taking us to Berryville. It’s awesome to see how much those trees have grown over the years.

What Do You Love About the Team Leader Community?
I love having the opportunity to mentor future Team Leaders. I learn along with the candidates, and it’s great to see them become Team Leaders and go on to mentor others! Each one teaches one!

What Inspired You to Become a Team Leader?
I’m old enough to remember when my hometown had a beautiful canopy of American elm trees. Dutch elm disease struck, and the effects of seeing all those trees disappear had a dramatic effect on me as a child. When I saw the article in The Post showing the loss of Washington’s canopy over the years, it struck a nerve. The before and after photos in the paper inspired Mrs. Casey to establish Casey Trees, and I followed the progress of the organization, eventually volunteering to become a Citizen Forester in 2007.

Gregg Serenbetz – Planting Through the Elements

Favorite Team Leader Memory?
There are so many, and it’s really hard to choose one favorite. The plantings with horrible weather conditions tend to stand out as the most memorable, so in that regard, a planting at Knollwood Community (Dec. 2018) is up there. There was driving rain during the entire planting process, and my team’s trees were at the bottom of a long grassy slope. Digging the holes was a muddy mess and a constant struggle to bail out water flowing down the hill and into the holes. We persevered and planted all of the trees, as we always do, and were rewarded with the most delicious and bone-warming soup at a community-hosted lunch afterward. The attached photo is from the planting, and I think it was even posted on Casey Trees social media at the time. Note, my muddiness aside, it doesn’t really do justice to how wet that planting really was!

What Do You Love About the Team Leader Community?
I love the comradery and spirit the team leader community displays week in and week out during the spring and fall planting seasons. Whether it’s catching up with old and new friends over coffee and bagels (or giant-sized pastries when we’re lucky) before the plantings, or pitching in to help other team leads and the crew finish up at the end of the plantings, there is a wonderful comradery that I feel very fortunate to be a part of.

What Inspired You to Become a Team Leader?
The giant-sized pastries, of course! But I stick around because of the friendships I’ve developed among the team leads and Casey Trees staff, the wonderful interactions with new and diverse volunteers each week and not least, the opportunity to plant trees that have an immediate impact to the community where they are planted, and eventually will grow and provide immeasurable benefits to the environment over their lifetimes.

Mary Thomas & Sam Myett – A Love Rooted in Trees

Favorite Team Leader Memory?
The November 2022 Anacostia skate park planting is a favorite because it was a complete surprise that we would be leading a team! Having been put on team 15 as volunteers, we didn’t see anyone holding up the 15 sign after the safety demo, and we wondered aloud who the team lead was. A passing Casey Trees employee – Nick – stopped and said, “You are,” while handing us the team lead packet and sending two very green volunteers in our direction. Three hours and three exposed root flares later, we planted our first trees as team leaders!

Honorable mention: Joined a pruning session at Mt. Olivet cemetery, where we learned how to prune trees that were planted a few years prior. Some branches were 20+ feet high!

What Do You Love About the Team Leader Community?
Two things – the broad knowledge and experience team leaders share from their combined decades of plantings. And their sincerity and willingness to help in any situation. Question about a girdling root? Not sure if your trunk is straight on a steep hill? Curious about whether or not that loblolly pine needs to be staked (answer: it does)? There are always so many team leaders that can help answer these questions. More importantly, the other team leaders are always ready to help, whether you have a root bag that just won’t come off or it’s the end of a tree planting event, volunteers have scattered, and there’s a tree that everyone forgot about.

What Inspired You to Become Team Leaders?
We just thought the team lead hat looked really cool! Well, that and a deep and growing love of trees. Our increasing knowledge of trees has brought us so much joy in our lives and has become a passionate shared interest in our relationship. We even talked about trees in our wedding vows! Being able to pass that knowledge and passion on in some way is immensely satisfying. That goes for tree care events, too, which are just as fun as plantings (really!). Planting a tree is just the beginning of our stewardship, so we love mulching and watering events, too.

Our team leaders are more than just volunteers—they’re stewards of the canopy and mentors to the next generation of tree advocates. We couldn’t achieve our mission without them, and we’re endlessly grateful for their dedication, humor, and heart.