Haddonfield Plants Willow Oak Tree For Arbor Day

HADDONFIELD, NJ — The Haddonfield Borough Commissioners, the Haddonfield Shade Tree Commission and members of the Haddonfield Rotary Club celebrated Arbor Day by planting a Willow Oak tree in front of Borough Hall on Friday, April 27, borough officials announced on Monday.

Dressed in full Colonial regalia, Haddonfield Town Crier Philip Zoebisch kicked off the ceremony with a vigorous peal of the bell and a loud cry of, “Huzzah!”

Haddonfield Commissioner John Moscatelli, the commissioner in charge of the Public Works Department, read the official proclamation and spoke of the need for Haddonfield residents to plant trees on their own property.

Henry “Skip” Bean and Janet Lane spoke on behalf of the Rotary Club, which donated the tree as part of a $2,500 grant that calls for the planting of a total of 10 trees along Kings Highway East and Grove Street.

Arbor Day is an annual event sponsored by the Shade Tree Commission, which oversees the selection, care and replacement of the borough’s more than 9,000 street trees.

The borough will also plant 88 trees as part of the annual shade tree planting program this spring to celebrate Haddonfield’s 25th anniversary as a Tree City USA town. This year, Haddonfield was also awarded its third Growth Award for the strength and quality of its shade tree management program.

The attached image of Randy Saxenmeyer, left, of the Public Works Department, assisting Henry “Skip” Bean and Janet Lane in planting a Willow Oak tree in front of Borough Hall on Friday was provided by Haddonfield officials. Photo credit: Jennie McElhone