EL PASO, Texas (KFOX14/CBS4) — Global volunteer organization, ASEZ WAO, brought their cause to El Paso with the objective to make a lasting impact through their tree-planting efforts.
With a name that means “Let us save the earth from the beginning to the end as one family”, ASEZ WAO is affiliated with the World Mission Society Church of God.
Sunday morning, ASEZ WAO, in collaboration with 915 Tree Keepers, gathered at Paul Harvey Park and were met by roughly 60 volunteers ready to help plant trees.
ASEZ WAO tree planting at Paul Harvey Park. (Credit: KFOX14/CBS4)
Their tree planting campaign goes by the name of “Mother’s Forest,” in which the organization is working towards its mission of planting 7 billion trees to reduce greenhouse gases and to cope with climate change.
Lupe Anchondo, a member of the World Mission Society Church of God and working with ASEZ WAO, shared how they hope to create a better future.
“Every small effort that you see here, community members, volunteer members from the ASEZ WAO Church of God —all our efforts, everything that we are doing is for the future generations, so we can take care of our community—take care of our world by making a positive impact,” Anchondo said.
According to asezwao.org, volunteers have helped plant 6,839 trees in a total of 14 countries thus far, with the El Paso stop contributing 25 trees planted at today’s event.
City Representative for District One, Alejandra Chávez, was also in attendance. Rep. Chávez emphasized the importance of the tree-planting initiative for the community.
“What we want is to create better environments and spaces for our community,” Rep. Chávez said. “This improves everybody’s quality of life, and it improves our environment as well.”
Rep. Chávez also encouraged her constituents to contact the City of El Paso, and her office specifically, if they’d like to request that trees be planted in their neighborhood.
“We all want spaces that represent the pride we feel as El Pasoans, and these trees will be just that,” Chávez said.
Rep. Chávez’s office can be contacted via email at district1@elpasotexas.gov. A neighborhood nomination form for tree adoption can also be filled out from the elpasotexas.gov website.
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