“Without trees, we wouldn’t exist,” Anne Holst, chairman of the Wildlife and Conservation Commission, reminded the students from John Brown Francis Elementary School.

Last Friday the commission visited the elementary school for the 11th Annual Arbor Day Tree Planting. The entire student population enjoyed their lunches outside for the event.

Holst asked students to take a “special interest” in the tree to make sure it can grow strong and thrive on the school grounds.

“You are taking a very important step to preserving the Earth the way we know it,” she said.

The tree, a Kousa Dogwood donated from Yard Works, should grow to have white flowers lining its branches.

Mayor Scott Avedisian and several members from the commission were in attendance for the event and each used a golden shovel to cover the young tree’s roots.

For one commission member, Henry Brown, the event was personal.

His great-great-great-grandfather was John Brown Francis, who donated the land for the school that shares the name.

He read part of a speech John Brown Francis read when the school first opened, “a school devoted to the elementary education of Warwick’s students.”

He shared the Brown family history and said how amazed he was to see the elementary school serving the same purpose and said his ancestors would be proud.

Then two students from every grade read a line from “Trees,” a poem by Joyce Kilmer that celebrates trees and their beauty.

The students reading were: Marley MacIsaac and Charley Urso from kindergarten; Emma Smitherman and Olivia Fung from 1st; Paige O’Brien from 2nd; Sophia SanGiovanni and Kiley Strain from 3rd; Colby Barker and Jessica Taul from 4th; Ian Kiernan and Sylvia Wysor from 5th; and Adriana Martin and

Zachary Gaudlap from 6th.

Avedisian said every year the tree planting is a fun event and it was nice to see the students get so invested in the tree so quickly.

“I think the students feel a sense of ownership and dedication to this tree by being here and watching it be planted. It really creates a love for the environment,” Avedisian said. “This event is a good way to remind us all why it is so important to plant trees.”

John Brown Francis Principal David Cluff told students, “You will be looking at this tree for the next century and every time you go by it, you can remember you were here when it was planted.”

Holst said it’s important to get young children invested in the environment now. She doesn’t think students get the chance to interact with nature or the growing process of plants enough.

“By having these plantings at schools,” she said, “we help the students become aware that we need to help the environment because it won’t survive on its own.”