Program Provides Students with Hands-on Learning About Trees, Environment

Trees provide so much, and require little in return, Ferguson Township Arborist Lance King told students at Wonderland Charter School on Thursday.

‘Trees do so many different things for us,’ he said. ‘They give us shade in the summer. They clean our water. They clean our air. And they require very little. You give them a place to grow, sunlight and water and they do all this for us.’

An educational program by the Pennsylvania Game Commission and the Ferguson Township-based Wildlife for Everyone Foundation is giving students at Centre County schools and across Pennsylvania an opportunity for hands-on learning and better understanding of the importance of caring for the environment.

On Thursday at Wonderland, Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania presented a check for $5,000 to Wildlife for Everyone to support the Seedlings for Schools program, which provides tree seedlings to pre-kindergarten through 12th grade classes throughout the commonwealth.

Jerry Regan, president of Wildlife for Everyone, said last year about 200,000 seedlings were sent to 900 schools around the state. In Centre County, nearly 20 schools participated. He explained that the Pennsylvania Game Commission grows and provides the seedlings at no cost and Wildlife for Everyone funds distribution.

‘I kind of fell in love with this program because it brought me back to when I was a kid,’ said Regan, who was named the foundation’s president in December 2016.

Scott Waitlevertch, manager of government affairs for Columbia Gas, said he reached out to Pennsylvania Sen. Jake Corman, R-Benner Township, about an organization in Centre County the company could work with to apply for a grant from its NiSource Foundation.

‘Fortunately in this area we have a lot of good organizations that do a lot of good things,’ Corman told students and teachers. ‘I was particularly fond of and supportive of this because this is our future and you are our future, and those things come together very well. The environment is our future. We’re only short-term residents on this planet and what we leave for the next generation is extremely important. Every generation needs to know that and leave a better place than what we found.

‘We’re very fortunate to live in such a beautiful part of the country here in Central Pennsylvania. We have a responsibility to take care of it and plan for the future.’

Any Pennsylvania teacher will be able to apply next spring to receive educational materials and seedlings. The Pennsylvania Game Commission website provides instructions, curriculum materials and activities to help teachers develop lesson plans about the impact of trees on the wildlife habitat.

‘The Seedlings for Schools program is a very exciting program that Columbia Gas today is announcing not only a $5,000 donation from our corporate foundation, NiSource Foundation, but also to let Centre County schools and teachers know the program is available, especially next spring,’ Waitlevertch said. ‘Next spring we’ll certainly raise awareness that the Seedlings for Schools program is up and running.’

Kelly Raudabaugh, Wonderland CEO, said the school’s students and staff are excited to be part of the program, which she said gives students an opportunity to be active members of their community while learning to be environmental advocates.

She credited King for heightening students’ interest in trees and caring for the environment after he welcomed them to participate in last year’s Ferguson Township Arbor Day celebration.

‘To this very day students are still talking about the events they participated in,’ Raudabaugh said. ‘Lance went above and beyond to make the day exceptional for students and his efforts truly made a significant difference. They have not forgotten the information they learned and are looking forward to it next year.’

Waitlevertch said Columbia Gas has worked with King and the township a number of times in the past to ensure projects like gas line replacements to don’t damage trees.

‘This type of partnership works easily when you have good partners, including your local officials in Ferguson Township,’ Waitlevertch said.

King said Seedlings for Schools provides a great opportunity for students.

‘I think Seedlings for Schools is a great program and it gives you guys a great opportunity to go out and get trees planted, whether it’s in your backyard, in a park, or at the school,’ he said. ‘Trees are part of our future and part of your future. It gives you the opportunity to plant a tree now and see how much it grows as you grow.’

Thursday’s event was also attended by Brian Stone, manager of the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s Howard Nursery, and Brian Burhans, executive director of the Game Commission, as well as Russ Schleiden, chairman of the board of directors for Wildlife for Everyone and CEO of Penn’s Cave.