On Saturday, October 21st, Riverfront North Staff came together with several volunteers, TD Bank, the Arbor Day Foundation, and more to plant several new trees in the southern forest at Pennypack on the Delaware as part of a mission to help the city to be cooler and greener.

Everyone gathered by the riverfront to sign in, enjoy coffee, and chat before opening remarks from Stephanie Phillips, RNP’s Executive Director, Nate McWilliams, Stewardship Manager for RNP, and Rick Carrion, TD Retail Market Manager for the Philly region. After that, it was off to the forest to begin the planting process, but not before an in-depth demonstration from Tristan Heinen, Stewardship Coordinator, and Nate.

“It just means a lot to see so many people helping out,” said Rick Carrion of TD Bank. “Just the comradery and being in the group working together to achieve common goals – it’s something that’s really meaningful to the area and beautifying the neighborhood, working together while we’re doing that.”

The volunteers consisted of area locals as well as college students, each breaking off into groups of two and three to get the trees in the ground. Filipi Cavalheri, a Temple University student originally from Brazil, touched on the nostalgic aspect of volunteering within his community. “It reminds me a lot of my father’s farm [in Brazil], and I’m learning a lot because the trees here are so different from the tropical ones back home,” he said. “I really just enjoy engaging with local community.”