A little chilly fall weather couldn’t cool off the excitement of the volunteers from Finch Auto Group who joined together with other Londoners on Sunday, October 24 to plant trees by the Oakridge Crossing stormwater management (SWM) pond.
The event, sponsored by Finch Auto Group – a group of local, primarily London-based car dealerships – resulted in 220 native trees and shrubs being planted in just 2 hours! The species planted included several pollinator-friendly plants to help support the health of the local ecosystem.
Danna DeJong, VP Community & Employee Relations at Finch, was in attendance at the event with her family. She said, “Finch Auto Group was thrilled to host their first tree planting event with ReForest London. It was a great opportunity for Finch employees, their families, and Londoners to come together and plant trees for the betterment of our local community.”
Finch Auto Group is known for being an incredible supporter of the London community, and sponsoring this tree planting event is just one example of their amazing efforts. They also began their annual “Finch Match My Donation” campaign in 2020, in which they matched Londoners’ donations to local charities, raising a total of $1,150,000. The campaign continues again this year.
Rachel Rensby, Neighbourhood ReLeaf Coordinator at ReForest London and the lead staff member at the event, expressed her gratitude to Finch for the fantastic job they did.
“It is so great to see local businesses step up and help make London a greener place to live,” she said. “The volunteers from Finch were an amazing group to work with and ensured that the highest quality was upheld with each tree they planted. Their contributions will directly impact the habitat for wildlife and pollinators, increase shade cover on the walking paths, and increase the water quality at Oakridge Crossing SWM. We are so happy we got to partner with them to make this day such a success!”
Indeed, tree planting events near stormwater management ponds have extra-special benefits for the local ecosystem. In addition to the usual benefits of trees like clean air, these plantings also improve the pond’s water quality, benefiting all of the species that live in and around it, and also reduce erosion, helping keep the human-owned properties in the area in top condition.
Thank you, Finch Auto Group, for being such incredible supporters of our London community! We are so grateful for your dedication to helping us make London cleaner and greener one tree – or 220 – at a time.
