A little bit of Hope has been planted in Huntsville’s River Mill Park.
Joyce Crone, president of Indigenous not-for-profit Hope Arises, says a birch tree named “Hope” was planted in the park Wednesday afternoon, to honour residential school victims and symbolize hope for the future.
“She also represents, I feel, the people of Muskoka,” says Crone. “Allies and Indigenous who want something better for the future. We look toward Hope, toward our little birch tree, growing and helping us understand our connection to the land, and to the earth, and to the ancestors who were here before us.”
Crone says the tree was donated by Sandhill Nursery last month for Huntsville’s Orange Shirt Day commemoration. The young tree is adorned with orange ribbons, located between three evergreens also decorated with orange ribbons.
According to Crone, the planting happened without much fanfare—just two town staff and herself performing a smudge to “protect” the tree. “It was lovely to see the town take so much care in planting her and taking care of her over the last month. It wasn’t a big ceremony, but one that means a lot.”
As for the female pronouns Crone uses to describe Hope, she says it’s because of the tree’s connection to the earth. “We refer to Mother Earth as female, as nurturing us, and trees are a part of Mother Earth, so I think they naturally take on that [persona],” says Crone. “Trees give life, and trees sustain us as human beings, so we need to have just as much respect for them as we do for one another.”
