Three-Year, $400,000 Tree Grant for SCA Students Planted in Vallejo

Woodsy Owl must be doing somersaults which, for an owl, is pretty impressive.

 

The Forest Service’s “other” mascot — besides that famous bear — with the motto, “Lend a Hand – Care for the Land” has got to be thrilled after a three-year, 375-tree planting program was confirmed for Vallejo via a $400,000 grant to implement programs to reduce greenhouse gasses.

 

The Student Conservation Association, the overseer of the funds and training, partners with the U.S. Forest Service on Mare Island, the Greater Vallejo Recreation District, and the City of Vallejo to employ 95 youths from Jesse Bethel and Vallejo high schools.

 

This Vallejo Urban Tree Youth Force will be will be trained in urban tree planting, tree maintenance, seedling propagation and computer-based mapping.

 

The students are chosen by Amanda Cundiff, partnering liaison for the U.S. Forest Service, Mare Island, with an assist from science instructors at the two Vallejo public high schools.

 

“When it started this summer on July 5, they were so quiet,” she said of the students. And when the six-week program finished Aug. 11, “they not only knew each other well, but there was a transformation that was just remarkable. Most talked about the communication skills they learned, working with a team and being comfortable public speaking. It was very powerful.”