I have been a volunteer steward for the Forest Preserve District of Will County for nearly 30 years. I have a site assigned to me that I have been working on throughout those 30 years.
Eighty-nine degrees, a sweltering August day in Chicago. No soothing breezes moved the air. The curtains hung damp with humidity.
We moved to Warrenville three years ago because we found a large wooded lot, a change from our small lot in another community. The wooded edge of the property was thick with invasive plants.
I grew up just outside Chicagoland in southern LaSalle county, in a small town on the banks of the Vermilion river.
We call her Betty. Betty White (Oak)! She was discovered during a New Year's Eve Oak Rescue at a private property along Route 14 in Harvard.
Although I have a sad story about the end of a tree, it is also a story of how that tree continues to contribute to the Riverside community and has connected people who share a passion for our plan
