Guest Blogger: Bill Smith, Lakeside Tree Advisory Team
On April 26, a seedling from the Oklahoma City Survivor Tree was planted in Lakeside on the hill overlooking The Memorial Garden at Chautauqua Park. This small American Elm is intended to be a reminder to all of the faith, hope and strength of survivors who have lost loved ones.
The story behind this seedling starts in 2015 when I represented Lakeside at the Tree City USA Award Ceremony held at the Toledo Zoo. The featured speaker was Mark Bays, Urban Forester from Oklahoma. His topic was the Survivor Tree at the memorial in Oklahoma City.
On April 19, 1995, Timothy McVeigh parked a truck filled with explosives in front of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. The resulting explosion killed 168 people and destroyed the entire north face of the building.
An old American Elm stood alone in the parking lot across the street from the Murrah building. The tree had been taken for granted but was a popular parking location. Commuters arrived early to get one of the shady parking spots provided by its branches.
