Tree-Plenish event to be held at NMBHS next week for Earth Day

By Ruben Lowman

Local high school students will be making a big difference in their community next week, one tree sapling at a time. 

Students with the Science National Honor Society (SNHS) at North Myrtle Beach High School will be holding a Tree-Plenish event next Monday, April 25, where they will be giving away tree saplings to local residents. 

Susan Horner, NMBHS Science Teacher and SNHS Chapter Advisor, said that they were holding the event for the first time this year as part of their promotions to raise awareness for Earth Day. 

“This will give the SNHS students an opportunity to earn two hours of community service but also provide free trees to our community members,” said Horner. 

Tree-Plenish is a non-profit organization that works with students to host tree-planting events in their communities that will offset their school’s paper usage during the last academic year. Students, guided by mentors, follow a three-step process that sees them “plant the seeds” for the event and then watch it grow to fruition. 

“The purpose of the Tree-Plenish event is to replenish the paper that our school uses throughout the school year,” Horner explained. “Our Tree-Plenish Event is a pick-up event only for those who signed up to receive a free Redbud tree.”

Thanks to a “generous donation” from the North Strand Optimist Club, Horner said the students will be able to give away 100 free tree saplings to community members this year. 

“Big shout out to them since this would not have been possible without their donation,” Horner said. 

Tree-Plenish estimates that every tree planted will offset 10,000 sheets of paper, so the Optimist Club’s donation will see over 1,000,000 sheets of paper offset alone. With the organization’s mission being to create more sustainable schools by replenishing the environment with lost resources, students at NMB have gone some ways towards achieving that goal with their event next Monday. 

“This is our first year hosting the event but we would like to participate in it again next year,” Horner said. “We will be accepting donations at the event on April 25^th in hopes of providing free tree saplings to the community again next year.  The SNHS would like to provide different species of trees at next year’s event.”

As the Grand Strand has continued to see growth and development take center stage, the region’s trees have seen a reduction in their overall numbers. Horner said the event is one small way to give back to nature, as trees are vital for the community and the local area.

“We are losing numerous trees due to deforestation and construction of new homes and businesses in our community,” Horner said. “Trees play a vital role in the environment. They add moisture to the air which helps to maintain our temperature and weather patterns. Trees play a role in our air quality, as well. Trees add oxygen to the atmosphere but are also responsible for absorbing pollutant gases and purifying the air.”

The Science National Honor Society will be out in the student parking lot at NMBHS from 4 to 5:30 p.m. next Monday to giveaway their Redbud saplings to members of the community. Horner said there were still a few trees left to give away and the link to receive the free sapling is on the NMBHS Facebook page.