This winter break, the traveling volunteer organization at Drew University, Volunteer Without Borders, partnered with Common Grounds Relief to help restore New Orleans’ wetlands. Through this partnership, the 16 participants planted an estimated 2,000 trees.
Founded in 2005 shortly after the destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina, Common Grounds Relief is a volunteer organization with the current mission statement of restoring the wetlands of New Orleans, which are disappearing due to flooding and human activities, such as dredging wetlands for canals or draining and filling for agriculture. In the initial months following the storm, Common Grounds Relief focused its efforts on providing basic supplies, such as food and water, and cleaning garbage and debris off of streets. Now, members of the organization focus on environmental restoration work, from planting marsh grasses to soil remediation.
Partnering with this environmental restoration group, Drew volunteers worked at the locations Bayou Sauvage and the Woodlands Conservancy, planting bare root seedlings and replacing flagged areas. Members of Volunteer Without Borders, Ange Wunderle (‘24), Anna Marino (‘24) and Elliot Franklyn (‘25), organized this trip so that volunteers could assist New Orleans’ community and learn more about historic environmental damages.
By 9 a.m., the 16 volunteers were up and ready to go, excited for the day and potential trees to be planted. Each location was at least a 20-minute drive from the Common Grounds Relief volunteer house, so every day there was an opportunity to see the city and the surrounding area.
The volunteers shared their opinions on their inner-city experience: some aspects of New Orleans were familiar, while others were foreign and new.
Arriving at the locations, the group separated into smaller teams and designated tasks of digging, planting and putting protective covers around the seedlings. Each day there was a target amount of trees that would be planted, and the enthusiasm of the teams allowed the volunteers to surpass this goal almost every day.
At the beginning of the week, the goal was 1,000 trees, and by the end of the week that goal was doubled and the volunteers finished by planting the 2,000th tree. After working each day and exceeding the quota of bare root seedlings planted, there was time to explore the city and become immersed in the local community.
The second day, the volunteers went to the French Quarter where they tried Cafe Du Monde’s famous beignets and walked around the historic surroundings. It is important to note that volunteering was the primary focus, but taking the time to learn about the cultural aspects of the city and understanding the history of the community was also very important. Most of the Drew students volunteering had never had this type of opportunity, so this involvement in the New Orleans community was something very remarkable.
To close out each day, there was a reflection to express everyone’s thoughts about what they were contributing to.
Volunteer member Jonah Fine (‘26) said during one of the reflection sessions, “It’s fascinating how different the culture is in New Orleans, versus the Drew University campus, and even my home in suburban Massachusetts. It’s amazing how a week of work can open your eyes to different ways of living and experiencing the world around us.”
The group went around in a circle talking about memorable moments, the importance of the work and how they were making a difference in just the short time they were there.
For many of the volunteers, this was the first time any of them had planted a tree, so to be a part of a group that planted 2,000 trees was a shared unique experience that will be unforgettable. Original members of Common Grounds Relief informed Drew volunteers that the environment would look healthy and proper again thanks to their assistance and the trees planted in the past week.
The grandiose efforts that both Drew students and Common Grounds Relief put into restoring the beauty of New Orleans will not be fully realized for about 10 years, when the trees will start to grow and sprout up from the desolate ground. Just as the seeds of environmental progress have been planted in Louisiana, the experiences of these volunteers will foster warm memories of the time they spent together.
Lindsay Orr is a sophomore majoring in psychology with a minor in philosophy.
Featured image courtesy of Lindsay Orr.
