For Immediate Release: Friday, April 26, 2024
Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich will celebrate Arbor Day and a successful end to the County’s Earth Month festivities with a tree planting at 1:30 p.m. on Friday, April 26, at Viers Mill Elementary School in Silver Spring. The tree planting is being hosted by the Montgomery County Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), Montgomery County Public Schools and Viers Mill Elementary School.
Viers Mill Elementary School is located at 11711 Joseph Mill Rd. in Silver Spring.
To celebrate Arbor Day, the County is planting trees at Viers Mill Elementary School as part of a $814,000 grant awarded to Tree Montgomery to plant 1,400 trees at 27 schools in equity areas of the County. Equity areas are considered urban places with low-income and high unemployment rates.
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County Executive Marc Elrich, DEP Director Jon Monger, government and civic leaders, environmental stewards, teachers and students will take part in this Arbor Day celebration.
The history of Arbor Day dates to 1872 when J. Sterling Morton, a newspaper editor, proposed to the Nebraska Board of Agriculture that a special day be set aside for the planting of trees. The holiday, called Arbor Day, was first observed with the planting of more than one million trees in Nebraska, and is now celebrated all over the world. National Arbor Day is always celebrated on the last Friday in April, but many states observe Arbor Day on different dates throughout the year based on best tree planting times in their area.
WHAT: Arbor Day Celebration and Tree Planting
WHEN: Friday, April 26. 1:30 p.m.
WHERE: Viers Mill Elementary School, 11711 Joseph Mill Rd., Silver Spring
WHO:
- Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich
- Montgomery County Department of Environmental Protection Director Jon Monger
- Climate Change Officer Sarah Kogel-Smucker
- Maryland Department of the Environment 5-Million Tree Initiative Coordinator Frances Marie Panday
- Montgomery County Public Schools Associate Superintendent of Facilities Seth Adams
- Viers Mill Elementary School Principal Matthew Hawkins
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Media Contact: Cindy Peña 202-875-1563
For updates and link to press release, see here: http://www2.montgomerycountymd.gov/mcgportalapps/Media_Detail.aspx?NaID=5812