2011 Sakura & Arbor Day Ceremony

Description

A gift of friendship; a spirit of hope. That is the theme of a ceremony that will be held at Clark College on Thursday, April 14. The event, which is free and open to the public, will take place from 1-4 p.m. It is sponsored by Clark College, the City of Vancouver and the Vancouver Rotary. The event will honor the 100 Shirofugen cherry trees that adorn Clark's main campus. Japanese cherry blossoms are known as sakura. The trees were a gift to the City of Vancouver from John Kageyama, who was then president of America Kotobuki, in honor of Earth Day 1990. This year, organizers will honor that gift of friendship by supporting Japanese relief efforts. Throughout the event, petals and bookmarks with messages of hope will be available for purchase through a partnership between the Clark College Japanese Club and Vancouver Rotary. All proceeds will go to Rotary Japan to support Japanese relief efforts. Online donations can be made at www.rotary.org. During the event, Clark College, Clark Public Utilities and the City of Vancouver will all accept national honors for their roles in the planting and caring of trees and for environmental stewardship. According to the Arbor Day Foundation, Southwest Washington is one of just a dozen areas in the country in which a government, utility and institution of higher learning have all received Tree USA designations. A ceremony will take place from 1-2 p.m. under the historic cherry trees near the Clark College music building and the O'Connell Sports Center. From 2-4 p.m., in the Gaiser Student Center, guests will enjoy activities, demonstrations, and tea and cherry blossom cookies created by the Clark College Culinary Arts Department.