Tomorrow, March 1st, I will be helping Friends of Trees with their scheduled tree planting event in the Argay neighborhood. The project will also serve Parkrose and Parkrose Heights. Please join us! For directions, follow that link.

This will be my 16th Friends of Trees planting workparty. Many volunteers are needed, because the trees we plant aren't little saplings, they are huge. A few years ago, I helped plant 49 trees on the street behind Parkrose High School - when the other team members were the group leader, a guy with his leg in a cast, and a dozen Brownies (the young Girl Scouts, not the chocolate treat). It took us five hours, and I could hardly walk the next day. I am hoping there will be more volunteers tomorrow. Usually Friends of Trees plantings are finished by noon, and I'll be working at OHSU tomorrow evening.

You'll notice my schedule tomorrow leaves no time for active campaigning by knocking on doors, making phone calls, or seeking media attention. I am looking forward to dedicating a day to quiet public service. I've been volunteering in Portland neighborhoods, and working in mental health nursing at OHSU, for over twenty years. When I am elected, I will continue to help with practical projects in neighborhoods, at least once a month. I also plan to keep my nursing license by volunteering the number of skilled practice hours required to retain it. Portland is my community, and I believe it's my responsibility to make it better - whether in far-reaching policy directives, giving nursing care, or by digging holes in dirt and planting trees in them.