Onwards and Upwards!

Posted on July 10, 2013 by vnarula

It’s summertime. Temperatures are up, trees are green again, and the small army of tamaracks from our free tree giveaway back in April are soaking up the sun’s rays in front and backyards around the Twin Cities.

The trees are enjoying the summer weather, comfy, sitting in their lounge chairs working on their tans, but you can imagine their bewilderment – and ours – when spring was a whole other story.

Just like spring, another Earth Day is behind us and we’re busy writing up a new chapter for next year. Before we share what we’re up to, we wanted to say that whatever we’re embarking on is, in large part, due to you. Yes, pat yourself on the back. All the positive energy you’ve sent us this year — your uplifting emails, phone calls, Facebook posts, words of encouragement, testimonials, they’ve given us the confidence that we’re ready to take Neighborhood Forest to the next level.

What we’re saying is this: you’ve given us a BHAG.

We know this sounds like something that requires ointment and a visit to our doctor, but a BHAG doesn’t need medical attention. If you haven’t heard the term, it stands for Big Hairy Audacious Goal. We mentioned it a few times on our Facebook page, but if you’re not on Facebook with us (and haven’t made us your BFF yet), we’ll mention it again.

We hope to reach 100 schools and plant over 10,000 trees in 2014.

This is a tenfold increase from what we did this year.

We know it’s an ambitious target, but we feel it’s time to reach for the sky. Think big. Branch out. It’s not hard to see how much of our inspiration comes from trees. We think we can do it. We believe with your help, anything is possible.

We are busy connecting with new sponsors.  Generous individuals are signing up everyday to sponsor a child, a classroom or even a whole school to plant trees.  People are excited about what we are doing. And so, we want to spread the word, let more people know and invite them to join us.

In that spirit, Neighborhood Forest has officially launched a campaign on one of the Internet’s most popular crowdfunding platforms. We think this platform is one way (among other paths we’re exploring) for us to reach our goal and build a base of Neighborhood Forest friends from around the country and around the world.

Thanks for your support and for helping us spread the word. Onwards and upwards!