Scott Eveland – Mayor, Florham Park
Tom “Ace” Gallagher – Ace Gallagher Stump Grinding, Whippany and Florham Park NJ
Ric Close – District Manager, Davey Tree Expert Co., Roseland NJ
Dr. William Ronzetti – Superintendent of Schools, Florham Park NJ
Phil Infantalino – Supervisor of Buildings and Grounds, Florham Park Board of Education
John Tsanto – Business Director, Florham Park Board Of Education
Chief Patrick Montuore – Florham Park Police
Carl F. Ganger, Jr. – Director, Florham Park Division of Community Services
Blaine Rothhauser – Chmn, Florham Parks Environmental Commis & Pres, BR Environmental
Judy Iradi – Hanover Township Deputy Mayor
Dr. Scott Pepper – Superintendent, Hanover Township Schools
Lorraine Konopka – Arborist, Township of Hanover
Lenny Ciurrillo – Superintendent, Hanover Township Parks & Recreation Department
John Cryan – Councilman, Morristown
Roy E. Aull Sr. - Supervisor of Buildings and Grounds, Hanover Township School District
Joe Aquino – YMCA Volunteer Coordinator One Day One School
Dan Gallagher - media consultant
Ace Gallagher Stump Grinding, LLC – Whippany and Florham Park, NJ
A and M Services – Hanover Township, NJ
All American Tree Company – Whippany, NJ
Cashman Landscape – East Hanover, NJ
D.K. Tree Experts – Madison, NJ
Davey Tree Company – District Office, Roseland NJ
Greenwood Tree Company – Whippany, NJ
Honor Tree Service – Madison, NJ
Chim Chim Tree Service – Freedon-Newton, NJ
Timberland Tree Service – Florham Park , NJ
Woodland Tree Company – Madison, NJ
Zizza Landscape Construction – Whippany, NJ
Florham Park Department of Community Services
Florham Park Environmental Commission
Hanover Township Department of Public Works
Hanover Township Environmental Commission
Hanover Township Parks & Recreation Department
Morris Center YMCA
Morristown Environmental Commission
Whippany Fire Department
BR Environmental, LLC – Florham Park , NJ
Florham Park Hardware
Leonardi Manufacturing – Weedsport, NJ
Morris Sign Company – Whippany , NJ
NJ Shopping and Dining (formerly “The Marketeer”) – East Hanover , NJ
Whole Foods Market – Madison , NJ
“One Day One School” Volunteer School Initiative Recognized
Organizers receive award from NJ Department of Environmental Protection
Organizers of the nationally recognized One Day One School voluntary school grounds initiative were presented with the New Jersey Green Community Achievement Award at the New Jersey Shade Tree Foundation’s annual meeting in Cherry Hill this past Saturday, October 21st.
The award is given by the NJ Department of Environmental Protection’s Parks and Forestry Division, in recognition of individuals or groups whose outstanding efforts have greatly contributed to the field of urban and community forestry.
The awards are co-sponsored by the New Jersey Forest Service, New Jersey Community Forest Council, and the New Jersey Tree Foundation.
The One Day One School program brings together tree experts, school officials, town representatives, local companies and students, all volunteering their own time and efforts to make their community school grounds cleaner and safer.
Co-founder Tom “Ace” Gallagher states, “Of course we are honored to receive the award, but we have always maintained that One Day One School was not about us. We sincerely believe that this is just the beginning, so the real honor of this award is it could be helpful in getting our message out to even more schools districts in New Jersey and beyond.
The initiative’s progress so far has shown that it really can be a win–win for everybody, particularly for the students.”
The next One Day One School event is scheduled to take place in Denville on November 14th.
VOLUNTEER SCHOOL GROUNDS CLEANUP PROGRAM COMES TO SALEM DRIVE SCHOOL
Nationally recognized “ One Day One School ” program brings together tree experts, school officials, town representatives, local companies, and young volunteers
Salem Drive School will be the site of the next “One Day One School” community volunteer cleanup event on Saturday November 1.
The initiative, now entering its third year, is based on the simple idea that a single day of volunteer teamwork will go a long way in making the community's school grounds cleaner and safer.
The day's activities will begin with a collection of area tree care companies donating their time, equipment, and services to prune and remove dangerous trees and branches.
They will then assist crews of volunteers in a complete cleanup of the area, and will finally supervise the planting of new trees and shrubs.
The program was inspired by Tom “Ace” Gallagher of Ace Gallagher Stump Grinding Service of Whippany when he noticed dead tree branches hanging over a path as he walked his son to Salem Drive School .
Having plenty of experience in clearing storm damage at various schools, he volunteered his company's services after learning there was no budget to clean up the potential hazard.
The idea was developed further with longtime friends Florham Park Mayor Scott Eveland and Rick Close of the Davey Tree Expert Company in Morris Plains .
The three quickly recognized the concept's potential not just as a “quick fix” for a particular location, but as an ongoing series of awareness-raising events that could be easily duplicated in any community.
After they'd enlisted several area companies and local officials, the first full-scale event took place in 2007 at Ridgedale Middle School in Florham Park with many of the school's own students among the group of enthusiastic volunteers.
Since then, the “environmental makeover” initiative has steadily expanded to include the participation of several additional tree services, school officials, town representatives, public works departments and community organizations along with other local companies and sponsors. An environmental education element has also been incorporated into the program itself.
Volunteer School Grounds Cleanup Program Comes to Salem Drive School
The organizers explain that since this type of work is not always allocated in a school's budget, the One Day One School program is an ideal way to bring the entire community together to make any of the needed improvements at no cost to taxpayers.
In fact, Florham Park Superintendent of Schools Dr. William Ronzetti has estimated that the series of One Day, One School initiatives had saved the district from $85,000 to $100,000 in 2007.
The series of One Day One School events has been covered by area publications such as the Daily Record, The Star-Ledger, The Florham Park Eagle and the Hanover Eagle & Weekly News, and the group has been contacted by several other municipalities interested in bringing the program to their own communities.
Confirming the organizers' belief in the idea's portability, a One Day One School event was recently held in Townsend , Montana following a feature article in Tree Care Industry Association Magazine.
The group of Salem Drive volunteers will also include a “crew” of Florham Park school administrators and town representatives.
“We want to take the program over to other communities,” said John Csatlos, Florham Park school district's business administrator. “We are dedicated to this, and we would volunteer at other schools as if they were our own.”
A barbecue grill will be manned by local police officials with all food being provided by Whole Foods of Madison, NJ.
Eveland has described the program as not only a way to raise awareness, but also as an opportunity for the participants to “take ownership in your school.”
“Never have people had so much fun working,” he said. “But more than that, this is an investment for the kids in the future or their community.”
'ONE DAY, ONE SCHOOL' ONE GREAT IDEA
Some years ago, Thomas “Ace” Gallagher of neighboring Hanover Township was in the habit of walking his son to elementary school each day. Gallagher wanted his son to be safe.
But as he looked up one day from the path they took to school, he was alarmed.
The reason: To Gallagher's experienced eye as the owner of a stump grinding business, he could see dead branches hanging over the path, along with dead trees.
Suddenly the walk to school didn't seem so safe.
Gallagher did something about it. He wrote to the school superintendent, volunteering his company's tree services. He didn't know it, but he was launching “One Day, One School .”
The idea: One day of volunteer work can do wonders in making school grounds cleaner and safer.
Soon, Gallagher found a like-minded partner in Rick Close, district manager of the Davey Tree Expert Company in Morris Plains . Now they had the wherewithal to climb trees and prune dangerous dead limbs, remove dead trees entirely, and grind down the stumps.
All of this caught the attention of Scott Eveland, a councilman who was running for mayor last year in Florham Park .
Eveland had been championing shared services to reduce costs to taxpayers. He had a project in mind for Gallagher and Close: removing dead trees, rotting limbs, undergrowth and debris from the area around a ball field at the Ridgedale Middle School .
Gallagher and Close went for the idea. So did Florham Park Superintendent of schools William Ronzitti, who knew the proposed work was beyond the means of the local school budget. Ad date was set for last June.
Ronzitti and Eveland weren't going to leave all the work to Gallagher and Close, however. They set about mobilizing student volunteers, and public works trucks. The idea was once the professionals had taken care of any dangerous trees and branches, the volunteers would move in and clean up the area. It wasn't just a case of fallen limbs and undergrowth either—there was a lot of jus plain trash in the woods bordering the ball field.
About a week before the cleanup date, high winds brought down a tree limb about a foot in diameter, crashing near the bleachers where parents frequently sit to cheer on the young athletes. Ronzitti realized “One Day, One School ” was coming just in time.
The eight-hour project day transformed a mess into safe, attractive grounds. Nearly 40 trees were pruned for safety and another 15 or so trees were removed. Students cleaned up litter and debris. Ronzitti cooked hot dogs for everyone on a grill. Not only did the school district gain free labor and equipment equivalent to a donation of about $10,000, but students also got a civics lesson, and the eight-hour day promoted teamwork.
It was all much too good to be a one-shot deal.
“One Day, One School ” is returning to Florham Park on Saturday, April 5. This time the project area will be the grounds of the adjacent Brooklake and Briarwood elementary schools off Brooklake Road . Four other tree service companies are joining Gallagher and Close in the effort. Student crews will not only clean up with rakes, but will plant new trees in shrubs native to the area under the guidance of naturalist Blaine Rothauser, chairman of the borough's Environmental Commission. So along with the civics lessons, students will get an education in biodiversity. Acting Police Chief Patrick Montuore will join Ronzitti at the grill. It will all go down between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. April 5, and as Mayor Eveland has pointed out, the lasting improvement “doesn't cost our taxpayers a dime.”
We applaud everyone involved with “One Day, One School ,” and encourage local residents and businesses to lend their support, as the Whole Foods market in Madison has by donating all the food for the day.
TREE EXPERTS, YOUNG VOLUNTEERS WILL AGAIN PARTNER FOR A CLEANUP
By Lisa Martone
Florham Park – An environmental makeover program that began in the heart of Morris County has now expanded nationwide into a community event that aims at benefiting neighborhoods and school districts.
It began some years ago when Thomas “Ace” Gallagher of the Whippany section of Hanover Township , who was in the habit of walking his 10-year old son to school every day, happened to gaze up and didn't like the looks of the loose branches teetering above their heads.
“I was walking my son to school and I looked up and noticed a lot of loose branches and debris all around the schools,” he said. “It seemed very hazardous for the kids to be around.”
Gallagher volunteered his company, Ace Gallagher Stump Grinding of Whippany, to come to his son's school and fix the hazards he noticed that day.
His volunteer efforts caught attention of a high school friend and Florham Park councilman, now Mayor Scott Eveland, and Rick Close, district manager of the Morris Plains office of the Davy Tree Expert Company.
Florham Cleanup
Gallagher partnered with Eveland and Close and set out in Florham Park last June with dozens of young people and teachers to clean up the Ridgedale Middle School grounds of hazardous debris, grind down stumps, and remove garbage and diseased trees, just as he had done in Whippany.
The efforts of the three men resulted in the launching of a full-fledged national community service program called “One Day, One School .”
The eight-hour cleanup day in Florham Park last June, mixing tree experts with volunteers, captured national exposure last December with a three-page layout about the program in Tree Care Industry, the official publication of the Tree Care Industry Association.
And, “One Day, One School ” is returning to Florham Park in 2008.
April 5 Event
From 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, April 5, Gallagher, Close, and Eveland again will be joined by William Ronzitti, superintendent of Florham Park's grades K-8 school system, and Acting Police Chief Patrick Montuore to rally together teachers, students and other community members for a day dedicated to the cleanup of the school grounds at the adjacent Briarwood and Brooklake elementary schools off Brooklake Road.
“This is an amazing community effort,” Gallagher said.
“I believe if everybody gives a little bit of their time, it makes a really big difference. This program makes a school better-looking and much safer – and safety is our biggest concern.”
Last year about 75 people came out to donate their services and time to clean up the ball field area of the Ridgedale Middle School off Ridgedale Avenue .
The eight-hour cleanup involved safety pruning of nearly 40 trees and stump grinding of 15 to 20 trees that were removed completely, totaling a donation of an estimated $15,000 in labor and equipment costs.
Eight graders, meanwhile, scoured the area around their ball field to pick up discarded soda bottles and other trash.
“This is a tremendous way to clean up the school with some necessary work, that doesn't cost our taxpayers a dime,” Mayor Eveland said.
Ronzitti agreed that the donated labor and expertise in last June's cleanup at the middle school would have been out of bounds for an improvement funded by the district's budget.
Native Plantings
This year, with the help of local tree companies, student volunteers will yet again rake, clean, and plant new trees and shrubs, native to the area.
Naturalist Blaine Rothauser of Florham Park, chairman of the Florham Parks Environmental Commission, will oversee the native planting efforts.
Ronzitti and Montuore will be cooking up complimentary hot dogs and hamburgers, provided by Whole Foods of Madison for the volunteers.
“We are always looking for people to come and help,” Gallagher said. “Getting the kids involved and bringing the community together is also what this is all about.”
All-American Tree Company of Whippany, Woodland Tree Company of Florham Park, Honor Tree Company of Madison and Ironwood Tree Service of Florham Park have also agreed to donate services and workers for the afternoon. Florham Park Hardware will be donating tools for the cleanup.
VOLUNTEER CLEAN UP SAVES TAXPAYERS THOUSANDS
Florham Pk. School Latest In One-Day Projects
By: David Zimmer
Florham Park – Tom “Ace” Gallagher's One Day, One School program swept through the Brooklake Elementary School this weekend as volunteers removed a variety of nonnative plant species, countless limbs and around 50 trees to ensure the safety of the entire perimeter of the schoolyard.
The Saturday event possibly saved the school district “$50,000 to $60,000,” said John MacFarlane, the Florham Park board of education president.
Davey Tree Co., Woodland Tree Co., Honor Tree Co., and Ace Gallagher Stump Grinding LLC of Whippany spearheaded this weekend's event. In addition, more than 100 volunteers participated, including students, teachers and township officials.
“If there is one thing I have learned it is that there are a lot of cool people that are willing to give back and put in the time,” Gallagher said.
Gallagher established the One Day, One School program two years ago to help clean up local schoolyards by removing rotten trees, hazardous debris, and invasive species.
“It was hard to get this program off the ground,” Gallagher said. “But I felt people would give back if they had a vehicle.”
The beginning
Last June, two professional tree companies and more than 75 people participated in the first event. During the eight hours of work the group pruned approximately 40 trees in an effort that would have cost Florham Park at least $10,000, Gallagher said.
Since then, the One Day, One School program has gained the support of municipal officials and tree care professionals from across the nation.
Recently, the eight to 10 hour day of volunteer brush clearing has spread as far as Townsend , Montana .
“This is all about teamwork,” Gallagher said. “We are working on keeping the community safe and ensuring that everyone is pitching in.”
For the second event William Ronzitti, the Florham Park school district superintendent, asked Gallagher to help clean up the woods near the basketball courts for the safety of the students.
“I asked if he could do the one corner,” Ronzitti said. “He said we can do that in about an hour.”
“This is the way we do it around Florham Park ,” he said. “We are like one big family.”
During the event, the volunteers collected refuse, spread mulch, and created brush piles in and around the schoolyard as the tree professionals scaled heights to trim branches, and got dirty planting trees and removing stumps.
Working fun
“Never have people had so much fun working,” Florham Park Mayor Scott Eveland said. “But more than that, this is an investment for the kids in the future or their community.”
“Where else do you see a kid asking for a rake?,” Eveland said.
Amy Iandiorio, a 10-year old volunteer, spent most of the morning finding garbage and assorted refuse in the woods, including the old schoolyard slide.
“It's just horrible to see,” Iandiorio said.
More than being fun, this is something that needs to be done, she added.
“This is really for the young children in the community,” Ronzitti said. “They will remember this day for years to come and hopefully take pride in what they have done today and what they can do in the future.”
Backyard lesson
Adventive species in the area were removed, and native species were planted to revitalize the area in hopes of creating a more stable environment. In order to inform the children in the community, there were several presentations given about the benefits of maintaining healthy forests.
“The idea is to get people to be better stewards of their own backyards,” Blaine Rothauser, the head of Florham Park 's environmental commission, said.
The professional volunteers created a mix of mulch and brush from the limbs and trees they removed to put right back into the edge of the schoolyard. Birdhouses were also added to ensure there would be new habitats for all forms of life to replace those that were removed.
Florham Park Hardware donated rakes, shovels and wheelbarrows, and the national grocery chain Whole Foods supported the event by providing food, beverages and other supplies, Gallagher said.
The Florham Park 's Deputy Chief of Police and Vice President of the school board, Patrick Montuore commanded the grill dishing out hamburgers, hot dogs, and tuna steaks to dedicated volunteers.
“With the help of the council and the board of education, this has become something really outstanding,” Andrew Bassolino, a township employee, said.
Selling free service
A Hanover resident for the last four years, Gallagher sends his children to the school district where his mother taught for more than 28 years.
Gallagher originally decided to offer his time and resources to the local communities because he was concerned about the hazardous tree limbs that loomed above the path his 10-year-old son took to school.
Since he works with more than 80 landscaping companies and 10 tree trimming services, Gallagher said, he was confident he could establish a successful volunteer program that would spruce up local paths and schoolyards for free.
Gallagher said he knew that limbs needed to come down, but thought the township would not be able to pay for such an expense.
“Everything comes down to budget these days,” he said.
Then Gallagher contacted the township offering to remove the limbs on his own time. With support from superintendent of Hanover schools, Scott Pepper, the township granted his request.
Spreading the work
Recently, Gallagher invited Superintendent Pepper to decide what school they would like the One Day, One School program to target.
“It is all coming back to roost,” Gallagher said.
“After we do our third school next year, we want to take the program over to other communities,” said John Csatlos, Florham Park school district's business administrator. “We are dedicated to this, and we would volunteer at other schools as if they were our own.”
Hanover Council member Judy Iradi described Tom Gallagher as “an asset to Hanover ,” since he is using his own time and resources to improve the community when he could be making money.
“ Hanover is a dedicated volunteer town, and both Gallagher and his program are good for this community,” Iradi said. “People are already talking about what has been done, and what will be done.” |