Golden Apple: Nisswa Elementary Students Plant Crabapple Tree For Arbor Day

Students at Nisswa Elementary School got to celebrate Arbor Day in a special way today. Members of the Mid-Minnesota Builders Association visited the school to plant a tree on the school grounds with first and second graders.

The Mid-Minnesota Builders Association has an annual tradition of visiting area schools around the holiday and donating a tree for the students to help plant.

“This is the ninth annual Arbor Day event that Mid-Minnesota Builders has been doing. What we do is go to a variety of different elementary schools in our service area,” explained Mid-Minnesota Builders Association Executive Director Colleen Faacks.

Though the holiday falls annually on the last Friday in April, Nisswa Elementary chooses to celebrate a day early.

“They came out today and presented to the whole class, talked about trees and Arbor Day and the history, and then they got to plant an awesome tree out on our playground that we can enjoy for years and years,” said Molly Raske, principal at Nisswa Elementary School.

The tradition has been a hit with the students.

“Every year is just really great to get the kids involved. Two weeks ago we had snow,” added Faacks. “But Mother Nature was helping us out,”

Planting the tree allows the students to not only participate in a fun activity, but also learn about the importance of trees and nature.

“Up in the north we are the land of the trees and the lakes and we want to make sure that for years to come we have locations for our students to be able to visit,” said Raske. “Our students need to know the history of Arbor Day and the ‘why’ behind why we celebrate it.”