Earth Day, observed globally on Monday, was kicked off early in the city of Folsom on Saturday with a variety of activities, including community projects and an eco-friendly Earth Festival outside the Folsom Community Center.
Replacing previous events such as Folsom Trails Day and the Landscape Festival, the inaugural Folsom Earth Day marked the city’s commencement of the annual worldwide celebration dedicated to raising awareness and appreciation for the planet’s environment and advocating for environmental protection.
“We are excited to host Folsom’s inaugural Earth Day celebration, bringing the community together through fun and volunteerism,” said Christine Brainerd, Communications Director for the City of Folsom. “The event is a great way to give back to the community and contribute to a cleaner, greener future for our city.”
Saturday’s Earth Day celebration began with a myriad of community projects undertaken by volunteers, many of whom were residents, along with area business owners and city leaders who united to make a difference for a few hours on a beautiful day in the 95630 area code. Much like the efforts previously seen on Folsom’s Trails Day, the projects included trail cleanup, trail bridge maintenance, creek cleanup, and restoring areas where the shoulders of Folsom’s trails had eroded.
At the Folsom City Zoo Sanctuary, over two dozen volunteers gathered to help beautify the zoo grounds. Tasks at this location included weeding, raking, landscaping, adding mulch to many of the animal exhibits and visitor areas, and overall cleanup of the facility.
At Lions Park, nearly 50 volunteers were busy participating in an Arbor Day Planting Project led by Folsom City Arborist Aimee Nunez. Volunteers formed several groups of two to four, including families and individuals who ended their day making new friends. The project began with a demonstration by Nunez on proper planting techniques. Afterward, the groups planted nearly 20 different trees, properly staked them for support, and finished by adding mulch around them.
Two different trail projects took place during the morning. Along the Johnny Cash Trail below the Folsom Rodeo grounds, one group of volunteers was busy restoring the eroded shoulders on both sides of the paved trail areas. A little further south, another group was engaged in the same activity along the trail areas just west of Blue Ravine Road.
Overall, some 250 volunteers donated their time on Saturday to make a difference in their community over Earth Day weekend. After their labor, most visited the grounds outside the Folsom Senior Center and City Hall to enjoy the Earth Day Festival. Over 30 booths participated in the event, including various city departments providing eco-friendly educational materials. California State Parks were on hand, along with the Friends of the Folsom Parkway, Parks and Recreation, Folsom City Council, local non-profit organizations, and dozens of local businesses offering environmentally friendly products or services, from recycled materials to planting and gardening supplies, drinking water services, crafts, and Folsom’s eco-friendly leader in local online news and entertainment. The event catered to all ages with plenty of children’s activities and educational opportunities for everyone.
Saturday’s event was an “opportunity to celebrate our vibrant city and get involved by volunteering and learning about solutions to address environmental concerns in our community,” Brainerd added.
The City of Folsom Earth Day was just one of several events taking place in the area over the weekend to make a difference. At Black Miner’s Bar, the Rotary Club of Folsom came out in force to continue its contributing to the native gardens project on site. The club got their hands dirty with addition landscape work, planting and more as the project continues (see related Folsom Times story on this project)
(Folsom Earth Day Celebration Photos: Bill Sullivan, Folsom Times)
