Casey Trees Endowment Fund

In the late 19th Century, the quantity and diversity of tree species located in Washington earned the District the moniker "City of Trees." However by the 1970's, the urban forest once envied by other world capitals had waned.

In 1999, Mrs. Betty Brown Casey, a longtime area resident and philanthropist, was deeply moved after reading the Washington Post article “Mayor Working To Keep It Green” profiling the staggering decline of the District's urban forest. Satellite imagery showed that the number of acres of heavy tree cover dropped 64 percent in two decades due to disease, development and natural attrition. Trees that died were not being replaced. The Committee of 100 on the Federal City appealed to then Mayor Anthony Williams to plant more trees in the District.

In a testament to how one single citizen can make a difference, Mrs. Casey worked to establish a non-profit organization designed to augment and support the work of the DC Government in reforestation and tree maintenance efforts. In 2002, Casey Trees was officially established.

In the years that have followed, Casey Trees has since established itself as a local, national and international leader in urban forestry.  Starting as a shoestring operation with just a handful of employees in their cozy 14th Street office, Casey Trees now has nearly 30 employees and thousands of volunteers from all over the District.  Their new headquarters, located in the Brookland neighborhood of Northeast DC, reflects this rapid growth and progress.  Opening in 2011, it comes complete with a rain garden, a bio-retention planter, and a green roof to slow and filter stormwater from both the site and the street while helping to reduce energy consumption.

Their programs have expanded too, moving beyond just tree plantings and mapping inventories, to new youth and adult education initiatives, and professional development opportunities for young volunteers.  Just this past spring, a record-setting 1,900 volunteers came out during the Community Tree Planting (CTP) season to lend a hand and help “re-green” DC.  This season alone, almost 800 trees were planted at 44 events spanning all across the city’s 8 wards.

Overall, since their start, Casey Trees has planted over 10,000 trees across our nation’s capital and educated thousands on the important role trees play in making the District a more livable community.

 

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