St. Bernard Green Team completes phase two of reforestation project

A blighted area on the grounds of St. Bernard of Clairvaux parish is seeing new life through a multi-phase reforestation project coordinated by the parish’s Green Team. On Oct. 20, parishioners and parish youth executed phase two of the project, planting native trees and shrubs to replenish the area, which is next to a streambed that lies within the Raritan River Watershed.

Phase one, in which 53 trees and shrubs were planted, happened last fall, and the plantings are thriving. This year’s addition of 59 trees and shrubs will bring the total planted thus far to 112.

The project was funded in part by a grant from the Victory Noll Sisters Small Grants Program, made possible by the generosity of the Our Lady of Victory Missionary Sisters, also known as the Victory Noll Sisters. These sisters have generously worked with Catholic Climate Covenant to offer $100,000 in the form of small grants to applicants with plans to advance the spirit of Laudato Si’ and promoting creation care projects around the U.S. 

Spearheaded by Green Team member Rosemary Pfreundschuh, the St. Bernard Green Team applied for the grant and was excited to learn this past June that it had won an award to aid with the reforestation.

Announcing the recipients of the 2024 awards, Dan Misleh, founder and interim director of Catholic Climate Covenant, spoke to the purpose of the grant program: “We’ve awarded several innovative solutions that honor our sacred duty to protect and preserve God’s creation while building bridges in Catholic communities. Through their inspiring initiatives, these grant winners embody our shared commitment to stewardship and sustainability, growing hope for a brighter, more sustainable and just future.”

The group of volunteers consisted of Green Team members, confirmation candidates and their parents, and Bold Youth Ministry members, who answered the call to care for creation and dug, cleared, planted, staked and set up deer protection for the newly planted natives.

The plantings, which include hollies, oaks, dogwoods and other species, will make up a “riparian buffer” that will play a vital role in providing habitats for birds and wildlife, controlling and filtering runoff, capturing carbon to battle climate change, and removing contaminants from the air we breathe.

The project was envisioned by St. Bernard pastor, Msgr. Randall J. Vashon, who noticed that the church property had lost numerous trees to the emerald ash borer. He suggested to the church’s Green Team that they investigate planting and restoring the property.

With advisement from Robert Lucas, a restoration coordinator at the Raritan Headwaters Association, the Green Team planned the four-phase project, which involves the clearing of invasive species from the land, and then planting of natives. All four phases are slated to be completed by 2026.

Along with the Office of Catechetical Formation at the parish, Mark Dransfield, St. Bernard youth ministry leader, helped coordinate the teen volunteers, saying, “Caring for creation is what God calls us to do. I love that the kids have the opportunity to answer that call through service right on our own parish grounds. They will be able to see the impact of their efforts for years to come.”

To learn more about the Catholic Climate Covenant, a national nonprofit based in Washington, DC. and inspired by the USCCB’s 2001 statement on climate change, visit https://catholicclimatecovenant.org.

Liz Dransfield is a parishioner of St Bernard Parish.