This Saturday morning, two groups of students and their crews of volunteers will descend upon two parks in the culmination of months worth of preparation and work for The Intertwine’s Our Common Ground Plant Off.
Team Sugar Skull at Dirksen Nature Park in Tigard and Green Team at Blue Lake Regional Park in Fairview hope to recruit 250 volunteers to spend four hours planting trees, shrubs, plants and bulbs.
If they meet their 250 volunteer requirement, a pair of Keens and a trip to see the Portland Trail Blazers will be just the icing on the cake for these two teams of students working on quite a list of community environmental work. Volunteers are encouraged to join the students in the work.
Hailing from Tigard and Tualatin high schools, Team Sugar Skull is a group of students who are part of Supa Fresh Youth Farm in Tigard, a nonprofit that gives youth paid employment opportunities while learning about sustainability, environment, agriculture and business.
Comprised of high school and college age students based in Northeast Portland, the members of Green Team are part of Groundwork Portland, a nonprofit that focuses on promoting environmental and social justice through community-led environmental improvements in low-income areas with a focus on sustainability.
Why do these two groups need 250 volunteers? In just four hours, they plan to plant 70 Oregon white oak trees and more than 2,400 other types of shrubs, plants and bulbs. Native Oregon white oaks are down to just 5 percent of the original habitat, said Solamon Ibe, Green Team coordinator at Groundwork Portland, and only 2 percent of that habitat is protected. Sixty of the Plant Off’s Oregon white oak will be planted in the wetland preserve at Blue Lake Regional Park.
The Plant Off was the vision of Intertwine director Mike Wetter, who wanted to create a program where youth could learn to plan, organize, promote and manage a tree-planting event. Wetter applied for a grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. After receiving the grant, Wetter worked to bring in the cash match needed to secure the grant funds.
The event has grown into a dynamic collaboration of sponsorship organizations. In addition to the prize donations from Keen and Moda Health, the students involved participated in educational workshops and were supported by mentors from various organizations. Friends of Trees taught the students how to plan a tree-planting event and the importance of native vegetation to the region. Frank Creative offered marketing training from poster design to developing a social media plan. Coordination and location support has also come from Clean Water Services, OHDC YouthSource and Metro.
More than just a day for greening, the teams have planned their own unique celebrations for the day of the Plant Off.
Team Sugar Skull has revolved everything down to their name around the date of the event, with a full Day of the Dead celebration. Volunteers can even honor a loved one by including a biodegradable tag at the base of the trees they plant. The team will also have free treats including coffee, hot cocoa and donuts, as well as face painting and a raffle. Volunteers are invited to join the fun decked out in costume.
The Green Team is carrying Halloween right into the weekend. Complete with costume contest, their Halloween themed celebration will host music and snacks for volunteers. In addition to their vibrant custom promotional posters, they’ve launched their own Facebook event for their division of the Plant Off.
Work begins at 10 a.m. on Saturday.