Spring is just around the corner! Mark your calendars for the annual Arbor Day event in St. Charles on Friday, April 27th. This year’s event will take place at Lincoln Park on Main Street, between 4th and 5th Streets. All ages are welcome to this annual celebration of trees. There will be live music, a tree raffle, tree care demonstrations and more! The fun begins at 4:00 p.m.! Included in this year’s Arbor Day are two contests. There will be a coloring contest for children and a photography contest. See details below on how to enter.Google Map
Arbor Day Photo Contest
The Tree Commission is again hosting a Photo Contest open to students 6th grade through adults. The subject of this year’s contest is open to bark, leaf or any type of tree (trees do not need to be native to the area). Residents are asked to submit digital photos in advance of Arbor Day. To submit digital photos; please include your name, address, and phone number to the Public Works office at pw@stcharlesil.gov no later than Friday, April 6th, 2012. You may also mail your digital photo submission to the City of St. Charles, Attn: Public Works – Arbor Day Photo Contest, 2 East Main Street, St. Charles, IL 60174. These photos will be displayed in the City of St. Charles Municipal Building at 2 East Main Street. Winners will receive special recognition at the Arbor Day festivities on April 27th.
Coloring Contest!
For our younger residents, up to and including 5th grade, the Tree Commission is hosting a Coloring Contest. This year, the Arbor Day picture is of Langum Woods and can be picked up at the receptionist desk at the Municipal Building located at 2 East Main Street, at Public Works located at 1405 S. 7th Avenue, at the St. Charles Public Library located at One South 6th Avenue, or by clicking on the picture below to download the coloring sheet with instructions. Please include your name, grade in school, phone number and home address. Return your colored picture with the above information to the receptionist at the Municipal Building or mail to the Public Works Department, City of St. Charles, 2 East Main Street, St. Charles, IL 60174. All entries must be received by Friday, April 6th, 2012.
Get the drawing and instructions.
About Arbor Day
St. Charles proudly sponsors this annual observance as a certified Tree City. St. Charles has been named a Tree City USA thirteen times by the Arbor Day foundation to honor its commitment to community forestry. St. Charles has met the four standards to become a Tree City USA community: a tree board or department, a tree care ordinance, a comprehensive community forestry program and an Arbor Day observance.
The first Arbor Day was held in 1872 after J. Sterling Morton, father of Morton Arboretum founder Joy Morton, proposed an annual holiday to plant trees on the windswept plains of Nebraska. Arbor Day is now celebrated in all fifty states and in many other countries around the world.
If you would like to get in touch with the City's Tree Commission to discuss ways you can help, please contact the Public Works office at 630-377-4405 or email Ben Deutsch at bdeutsch@stcharlesil.gov.