Shippensburg University’s Residence Hall Association (RHA) teamed up with volunteer SU students to host its annual Arbor Day festivities on Friday.

At 10 a.m., volunteers arrived in front of the Ceddia Union Building (CUB) amphitheater to begin planting trees around SU’s campus. A station was located in the amphitheater, containing water bottles and snacks to help sustain the volunteers.

Students and community members were greeted by SU grounds manager Jerry George and SU resident assistants, equipped with shovels, buckets and a tree attached with directions on how to sustainably plant trees in a way that will benefit SU environmentally.

The group planted until 2 p.m., with new trees planted from behind the Ezra Lehman Library to in front of the CUB.

“In 20 years, you all can come back and visit the university and how it’s changed, and you’ll be able to recognize the trees we’re planting today and how they’ve grown,” George said.

The student volunteers were lending a hand in making the campus green for years to come, and several commented on the importance of recognizing Arbor Day.

“I definitely think it’s good to plant on Arbor Day. Anytime people plant instead of destroy, [it] is a benefit to everybody,” sophomore Benjamin Clemer said.

Sophomore Leara Swartz, who volunteered for the first time, discussed how it made her feel to give back to the community.

“I never thought of Arbor Day as anything special until I actually planted a tree,” Swartz said.“It felt good to give back to the community and environment today.”

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