Thank you & merci beaucoup to the Earl Marriott students who joined us and contributed from:
Ms. English’s grade 9 class: Elle, Pavni, Alexis, Thomas, Tania, Brox, Fraser, Nelson, Chelsea, Nicholas, Kingston, Jack, Mariel, Ava, Ricky, J.J., Anna, Wenqing, Ernesto, Avery, Eva, Ben, Nico, Ziya, Lukas, Devan, Amaia, Joni, Chelsea, Ryan, Grayson, Tavin, Billee, Kateryna, Tristan, Morgan, Maanika, Justyce, Elizabeth, Mathew, and Joy!
Thank you to the H.T. Thrift Elementary School students who joined us and contributed from:
Ms. Hiddleston’s grade 6 class: Mila, Sevik, Naomi, Haley, Casey, Ralph, Robert, Arabela, Hannah, Jaxson, Christian, Sharon, Venus, Ava, Jesse, Venice, Karl, Iman, Jaden, Yiyi, Pehel, Cathy, Daniel, and Evelyn!
Ms. Ordeman’s grade 6 class: Olivia, Braiden, Yeomin, Anthony, Jack, Hajin, Hyunjin, Andrew, Andy, Ryan, Joseph, Bella, Zainah, Noor, Kallen, Catalina, Sumair, Kaylie, Maggie, & Julian!
We had an amazing time celebrating Earth Week by removing invasive Himalayan Blackberry and English ivy to restore habitat at this park! It was a beautiful day to spend quality time together with classmates in nature. There was a great impact made and lots of smiling faces!
Impacts
- 85 students from H.T. Thrift Elementary School and Earl Marriott Secondary School were engaged!
- 44 students removed invasive plants for the first time
- 34 students visited Ruth Johnson Park for the first time
- 3 teachers (Ms. English, Ms. Hiddleston, and Ms. Ordeman) brought their classes.
- 5 parent chaperones helped out today!
- 148 hours were contributed towards revitalizing local habitat!
- 9.5 cubic metres of invasive Himalayan Blackberry and English Ivy was removed (equivalent to the volume of 59 bathtubs!)
- 105 square metres of habitat revitalized
Highlights
- Because of excellent efforts that our volunteers and others have made in other areas of the park we were able to return to this part of the park for the first time since 2018! Check out our blogs from those activities here:
- July 15 2018
- June 16 2018 – This activity was our Partnerships Manager Ashton Kerr’s second ever activity with the Lower Mainland Green Team as a volunteer! She took a 2 hour bus ride that day to get here back in 2018 and we’ve been grateful to have that dedication as part of our team! See if you can spot her in the pictures from the Peace Arch News article on that activity!
- The elementary students walked to and from H.T. Thrift to participate today and the Earl Marriott students took public transit to participate. Both eco-friendly ways to join us!
- They got lots of exercise at this fun outdoor education field trip!
- Students had a great time learning the difference between the invasive Himalayan Blackberry and native Trailing Blackberry we were able to save!
- Students removed ivy from the trunks and area around the base of many trees in the area, helping to protect and preserve the health of these trees!
- Shoutout to Ben had a keen eye and spotted some English Laurel & English Holly he was able to also remove!
- Yummy snacks were enjoyed before heading back to school
- Special thank you to:
- Justin, Spencer, & Jamie with the City of White Rock for their role in planning and supporting this activity!
- Ms. Hiddleston, Ms. Ordeman, & Ms, English for their work to bring their classes out to this activity!
- The parent volunteers who helped set up snack!
- All the teachers, students, and parent volunteers who came out with enthusiasm to help us revitalize this area!
Video of Morgan, Grayson, & Thomas, talking about the importance of removing invasive plants!
Video of Ms. English, talking about what a great opportunity this activity was for her class!
Community Investment Partner
THANK YOU to the City of White Rock for providing the financial support and direction to make this activity possible!
Together we are achieving our common goals and creating connected, healthy and resilient communities engaged in environmental stewardship.
We’ll be back in partnership with White Rock at the West Beach on May 17th to remove more invasive blackberry as a community activity! We welcome all to join us!
Why We Do This Work
The Lower Mainland Green Team is a program of the charity Green Teams of Canada.
We believe in the transformative power of hands-on environmental activities to empower individuals and strengthen communities.
Through initiatives like invasive plant removals, tree plantings, litter clean-ups and more, we not only foster connections among participants but also deepen their relationship with nature. Spending time outdoors has been shown to reduce stress and anxiety while enhancing mood, focus, and overall mental and physical health.
Our activities are designed to be inclusive, welcoming individuals of all backgrounds, ages, abilities, and skill levels.
What sets us apart is we attract a wide mix of young community members who may not otherwise spend time outside, igniting their passion for nature and environmental care.
We are committed to instilling an environmental ethic that leads to lasting behaviour change. We aim to create a sense of belonging and connection to place, encouraging participants to recognize their ability to make a meaningful impact.
Together, we can all make a difference. Join us as we build a brighter, greener future for everyone!
Staff Who Made This Activity Possible
Our staff work hard to run high-quality community activities. Outreach, activity logistics, social media, reporting on impacts, partnership building and more – they do it all!
Max Muehlen, our Lower Mainland Green Team’s Program Manager led this activity with support from Ashton Kerr ,the Lower Mainland Green Team’s Partnerships Manager who builds our relationship with communities like Richmond to make these activities happen!