Brought to you by
The Davey Tree Expert Company has donated 1,861 trees as of October 2023 through partnerships with the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers, Major League Baseball’s Cleveland Guardians and the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins to help re-establish tree canopies in Northeast Ohio and Pittsburgh.
“Davey recognizes the positive impact and critical role trees have in our communities, so it’s important for us to help reestablish the tree canopies in these areas,” said Sandra Reid, vice president of corporate communications and strategic planning at Davey Tree. “We are excited to be a part of initiatives helping to bring more trees to Northeast Ohio and Pittsburgh, and we look forward to continuing these partnerships and cheering on some of our favorite teams in the upcoming seasons.”
Teaming Up for Trees
During the 2021-22 NBA Cleveland Cavaliers season, Davey donated 953 trees as part of the Trees for Threes program for every three-point shot the team made. Davey donated the trees to various non-profit and community organizations and helped plant the trees across Northeast Ohio. Planting events included a distribution event in October 2022, where non-profits picked up their trees at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse, home of the Cavs. The second event was a tree planting in November 2022, at Brookside Reservation, where trees were planted with community officials and Davey, Cavs and Cleveland Metroparks volunteers. The remaining trees were donated to the Girl Scouts of North East Ohio and Boy Scouts of America to be passed out at community events. During the 2022-23 season, 486 trees were donated for every home three-pointer made, and planting events are being planned for fall 2023.
Davey also donated 132 trees for the Swing for the Trees program for every home run the Cleveland Guardians hit in 2022. Events included a planting event held in May 2023, where Guardians and Davey volunteers met at B-Buzz Baseball Field for a ceremonial tree planting. A second planting event took place in June 2023, at José Ramírez Field in the Clark-Fulton neighborhood to plant the remainder of the trees. During the 2023 season, 148 trees have been promised to the community for every home run, with planting events being planned for spring 2024. The Guardians hit 124 home runs, and Davey decided to add 24 trees to the final number of donated trees for the number of home runs Guardians star José Ramírez contributed.
Not leaving out hockey fans, Davey’s Score for the Trees campaign plants one tree in the Pittsburgh area for every home goal scored. During the 2022-23 season, 142 trees were donated to the Pittsburgh community. Davey is also a sustainability partner with the Penguins through its ‘Penguins Pledge’ sustainability initiative.
These trees do more than just beautify the neighborhoods where they are planted and strengthen community ties. The 1,861 trees at maturity will also sequester over 3,000 tons of carbon and intercept almost 30 million gallons of rainfall and stormwater runoff. Altogether, the new trees will provide a monetary value of almost $500,000 to the community.
For more on trees, see:
Seven Tough Trees For Urban Areas & Climate Challenges In 2023
Asian Longhorned Beetle Update: ALB Currently Found In Four States
