(Westfield News) During his remarks at the ceremony before a tulip tree was planted in the front of the school, Principal Jesse McMillan said the project started when he was speaking to School Committee member Kathleen Hillman last fall about ways to enhance the school property.
“We thought, what better way to do this than with trees? As someone who lives in the hilltowns surrounded by trees, I could certainly appreciate what this could offer to our school community,” said McMillan, a Chesterfield resident.
McMillan said this week that the “curb appeal” is already evident, as well over a dozen trees have been planted since the Friday ceremony and are visible to cars driving by. He said the plantings will continue for several weeks.
During his remarks, McMillan, a former English teacher, quoted poet Joyce Kilmer: “‘I think that I shall never see a poem lovely as a tree.’ His words encapsulate the essence of what we celebrate on Arbor Day — the beauty, the significance, and the invaluable contribution of trees to our planet and to our lives,” he said.
WMS students expressed their talents throughout the program, with performances by the Westfield Middle School band and choir, and a backdrop of 12 nature- and tree-themed murals painted by Jason Novetsky’s art class. McMillan said the murals have been taken down to be treated with a protective spray, and then will be put back on view.
Also speaking at the ceremony were state Sen. John Velis, state acting Education Commissioner Russell Johnston, urban forester Sarah Greenleaf of the Greening the Gateway Cities program, and city School Superintendent Stefan Czaporowski. Mayor Michael McCabe, and members of the School Committee and City Council, also participated, digging a ceremonial shovel of dirt.
“I was thrilled to have representation from the state level and local level as well, and to have the commissioner and senator to be part of it and continue to put a light on Westfield and Westfield Middle School,” McMillan said, adding that he appreciated everybody who spoke and participated in the ceremony.