If you’ve got a love for trees — and history — the Riverview Horticultural Centre Society (RHCS) needs your help.
Volunteers are being sought for the society’s Treefest planning committee following a string of retirements, including recently from president Teri Madaisky.
“After 25 years of hosting the Treefest at Riverview,” she wrote to The Tri-City News, “our Treefest committee, like other groups, has been unable to recruit new members for planning the event.”
She added, “[It] has been a very popular and much-loved event over the years in the community.”
Held in September, with partnerships from the city of Coquitlam, BC Housing — the province’s landlords — and Kwikwetlem First Nation, Treefest attracts hundreds of visitors from around the Lower Mainland to the former mental health hospital grounds, off Lougheed Highway.
RHCS has long advocated for the preservation of Riverview’s trees, which were planted more than a century ago by provincial botanist John Davidson.
Last year saw the 25th anniversary of Treefest.
Madaisky said it’s unlikely a Treefest will happen next month; however, if the society gains enough backing, a planning committee could start operations for next year’s gathering.
To lend a hand on the 2020 Treefest planning committee, call 604-290-9910 or email [email protected].
