Fourth Grade Foresters to plant their own trees

More than 220 fourth-graders in the Greencastle area will roll up their sleeves and take part in Arbor Day on Friday, April 26.

Students from Greencastle's Tzouanakis Intermediate School and South Putnam Central Elementary School will become mebers of Fourth Grade Forester. The project's goal is to help revitalize observation of Arbor Day in America's schools.

Each fourth-grader at the two schools will receive a tree to take home and plant.

Therese Cunningham of Cunningham State Farm Insurance is sponsoring the program at the local evel.

"Trees are vital to our community's sustainability," Cunningham said. "It's important for our young people to learn early to give back to the earth."

Fourth Grade For-esters USA was created to provide a simple and inexpensive way for any individual, business or organization with to send the fourth-grade students at an elementary school home with a tree of their own to plant and care for.

Each fourth-grader receives an individually packaged 12- to 18-inch evergreen tree seedling packaged by workers with disabilities.

"This project is made possible because community business people like Therese Cunningham covered the cost of each of the individually packaged evergreen trees, so that there is no cost to the students, the teachers, the school, or the taxpayer," program co-founder Debra Ersch said. "It's a wonderful way to show support for the community, education and the environment."

Now tree planting is even more important than ever. Trees take carbon dioxide (CO2) out of the atmosphere and clean the air we breathe. Planting trees is a simple, inexpensive and easy way to improve the community.