Airmen and students beautify Malmstrom parks

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Katrina Heikkinen
  • 341st Missile Wing Public Affairs
MALMSTROM AIR FORCE BASE, Mont. --  Team Malmstrom and Great Falls High School students recently teamed up with the 341st Civil Engineer Squadron Conservation Program and Cascade County Conservation District to complete two beautification projects at Sun Plaza and Powwow Parks.

Spearheaded by the Airman's Council, more than 20 Airmen got their hands dirty and planted 110 trees at Sun Plaza Park and the surrounding area April 25. The project was developed in celebration of Earth Day, which aims to prevent erosion, create windbreaks and enhance the open areas at the park.

"Planting trees enhances outdoor awareness and an appreciation for land stewardship," said Jason Gibbons, 341st CES biologist. "There is typically a sense of pride in volunteers, whether they're planting and watching something grow over the years, improving outdoor recreational opportunities or habitat restoration, future generations will benefit from the volunteer efforts performed at Sun Plaza Park."

Airmen planted Ponderosa pine, Colorado blue spruce, Black Hills spruce, Red maple, Chokeberry and Japanese lilac trees. The 341st CES Conservation Program provided all the equipment and purchased the trees through the Cascade County Conservation District.

"This was the first time most of the Airmen ever planted a tree and it was evident by their enthusiasm that this was really meaningful to them," Gibbons said.

"I'm so glad I got involved with this project," said Airman Rory Stodgell, 341st Logistics Readiness Squadron traffic management apprentice. "It was a great chance for Airmen to contribute to Earth Day and improve the environment."

In conjunction with Arbor Day, another park at Malmstrom received a landscaping improvement.

More than 30 freshmen from GFHS science classes, along with adult volunteers from Cascade County Conservation District, U.S. Forest Service, Great Falls Park and Recreation Department and the 341st CES, came together to help plant 320 trees at Powwow Park May 4. They planted Ponderosa pine, Cottonwood, Red maple and Japanese lilac trees in celebration of Arbor Day - the national holiday of planting trees.

"Over the last few years we've planted approximately 800 trees in the vicinity of Powwow Park and this is the second year we've partnered up with Great Falls High School to do this project," Gibbons said. "The community really likes working with the base and introducing students to these types of resource projects. Here on the base, we don't have a lot of opportunities to plant this many trees, so it's a win-win for the community and the base."

GFHS "Foundations of Science" teacher, April Senger, was teaching her students about erosion and wanted to provide a celebration for the end of the unit.

"It's very nice to extend this opportunity to the students in Great Falls to get some hands-on experience with trees," Senger said.

Team Malmstrom and Great Falls' 55 volunteers who planted more than 430 trees were successful in enhancing base parks and made substantial improvements to the ecological environment for many years to come, according to Gibbons.