One of the cool things about being in the third grade at Ada Elementary School is the annual Arbor Day Celebration.

Each spring, the volunteers on the Ada Tree Commission visit the third graders to talk about trees.

The commissioners share stories about trees, wildlife and how to plant the bare root tree each student receives from the Tree Commission. Tree Commissioners also talk to the students about it means to be a Tree City USA, as Ada has been named for 36 years, and what it means for Ohio Northern University to be a Tree Campus USA, as ONU has been named for seven years.

The students also get to take an active role in the celebrating. Prior to the event, current Mayor David Retterer asks the students to draw tree-themed pictures.

This year, he has asked the students to illustrate things the student’s favorite tree. The mayor then collects the drawings and selects the three that most catch his eye. The artists of those pictures are recognized at the celebration, and each received a tree related book that has been selected by the mayor.

The Ada Tree Commission looks forward to talking with the students about trees and Arbor Day each year.

According to the Arbor Day Foundation, an estimated one million trees were planted in Nebraska on the first Arbor Day in 1872. Locally, the holiday is celebrated with a proclamation of the mayor, which this year declares Friday, April 28th, as Arbor Day in the Village of Ada.

In his proclamation, which is first shared with the third graders, Mayor Retterer stresses the importance of trees in our community. In the past he has written “trees can reduce the erosion of our precious topsoil by wind and water....produce life-giving oxygen, and provide habitat for wildlife, and....trees, wherever they are planted, are a source of joy and spiritual renewal.”

Civic organization involvement was also a major component in the early days of Arbor Day celebrations, and the Ada Kiwanis Club continues that tradition each year. Representatives from the Kiwanis often make an appearance at the celebration, and the club continues to support the objectives of the Ada Tree Commission.

This year, the celebration with the Ada third graders will be held on Friday, April 28, at 9:30 a.m.