Planting Trees, Deeping Friendships!

by Eriq Acosta, National DirectorThis work doesn’t happen without the support of the rest of the world. If one were to ask themselves the question, you might think most of TWP's support comes from people and organizations that are already deeply invested in environmental causes. In my world, for example, there is no instant or obvious connection between Trees, Water & People and Delta Dental. Like any good friendship, however, this one comes with a story. Earlier this year, I had the pleasure to host a group from Michigan, Lansing Catholic High School, to Pine Ridge South Dakota to help plant trees across the reservation. I worked with this group like I do with any other that comes on these trips with us - we explored the culture together, planted some trees, and most importantly, talked about our privilege and how we take that into the spaces we go.I love experiential education and I utilized a lot of these methods to emphasize the importance of recognizing how the social privileges we sometimes bring into spaces as volunteers interfaces with the historical context of areas like Pine Ridge. I talked about the importance of being allies for each other and the importance of being aware of what intentions we bring with us when we show up to do volunteer work like we were doing. The group responded really well the rest of the week, and the topic was brought up several times, most frequently by two dads who were the group's chaperones.We got really close sharing a lot of stories, as well as learning the invaluable skill of how to play Texas hold 'em! Towards the end of the week, I learned that the two chaperones worked for Delta Dental, though we never talked about teeth or dental insurance. I was especially inspired by the energy these two brought to the group not only as chaperone support but most importantly their enthusiasm to do hard physical and mental work while having fun. Having kept in contact with these two, I shared a picture with them of me playing Texas hold 'em with a group from the Hoopa Solar Training showing off my new learned skills. 4 days later I get a text back thanking us for the work that we do, and letting us know about Delta Dental's generous donation to support our programs on Tribal Lands! I am personally grateful for the support of people like the folks from Delta Dental not only for investing in TWP's mission and programs but also for taking the time to open their hearts and minds to what I have to say. To read more about the many ways to ally with and support TWP, please visit our Partners page on our website.