On Saturday, October 27 from 9 a.m. – noon, hundreds of volunteers, Kent’s mayor and others will join the Green Kent Partnership at the first annual Green Kent Day, a day of volunteer restoration events to celebrate the Partnership’s great successes.
The Green Kent Partnership is public-private collaboration among the city of Kent, nonprofit Forterra, and thousands of volunteers to restore and steward the city’s forested parklands and green spaces.
This year’s efforts center on restoration events at Morrill Meadows Park and the Green River Natural Resources Area. Volunteers will plant trees, shrubs and groundcover at both sites to help re-establish a healthy forest and wetland. Kent Mayor Suzette Cooke will join volunteers and city and Forterra staff at the Morrill Meadows site to proclaim Kent’s annual Make a Difference Day will from now on be known as Green Kent Day.
Volunteers interested in joining the event must register in advance at GreenKent.org or call 253-856-5110.
According to Mayor Suzette Cooke, Kent has always had a robust volunteer base. “The Green Kent Partnership gives them a greater sense of ownership of our public green spaces. They can see the big picture and what restoration will mean to them, their kids and their grandkids,” Cooke said.
“Green Kent Day shows what can be accomplished when a community shows their sense of civic pride and comes together to work towards an important goal like parkland restoration,” said Kory Kramer, Forterra Green Cities Program Manager.
The Green Kent Partnership was formed in 2009, the fifth of six Green Cities in King, Pierce, and Snohomish Counties. It was founded with a 20-year goal of restoring Kent’s parks and natural areas while building community through volunteerism. In 2011, volunteers gave 1,820 hours of their time, including 580 hours by youth volunteers.
This year’s events were made possible thanks to a generous grant from REI. Starbucks and Farrington Court are donating refreshments.
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ABOUT FORTERRA
Forterra is an unconventional land trust that works across Washington’s communities and landscapes, from the ranches and shrub-steppe of the Yakima basin, to the estuaries, farms and forests of Washington’s coast, reaching more than 100 counties, cities, towns and rural communities. Working cooperatively with people and nature, Forterra drives land stewardship, management and planning; innovative programs and policies; farming and forestry approaches; community ownership opportunities; and development solutions. Visit www.forterra.org.
