This year the Town of Orangeville celebrated Earth Day. Trees were donated by CVC, Trout Unlimited, Izaac Walton Fly Fishing Club and TD Canada Trust and demonstrations, instructions and information was provided to 125 volunteers who showed up on a hot Saturday morning - some old, some young, parents with kids, teenagers.

We planted approximately 800 trees along the Monora Creek in two locations. When the work was done, the Lions Club fed us hotdogs and hamburgs. Even a passerby stopped and donated money to our cause when he saw what we were doing. It was a great day! The first Earth Day in Orangeville.

Many days my walking route takes me to the planting locations and it is a pleasure to see our small trees growing and flourishing. So it is with great disappointment that on one such day, walking along College Ave. I noticed many of our newly planted trees had been vandalized. The tops of 17 trees had been hacked off and left on the ground beside the small tree trunk.

Staff from Parks Dept. came out and trimmed the tree hoping it will sprout another branch.

The trees we plant are our future and the future is for our children. We are all stewards of our earth and responsible to take ownership and to teach our children.

I guarantee that not one of the volunteers that came out on Earth Day committed the vandalizing. Nor do any of the many volunteers that picked up hundreds of bags of garbage this spring litter.

This is a community and our community needs to take care of itself. It would be very refreshing to have those who committed this offense come forward and make restitution. It would be a life lesson - Earth Day is Everyday.

Councillor Sylvia Bradley

Chair, Orangeville Sustainability Action Team.