Josiah McLaughlin, 5,was one of about a dozen Hollidaysburg area home-schooled students who participated in the planting of an October Glory maple tree along Walnut Street in Hollidaysburg as part of an Arbor Day ceremony on Friday. Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski

HOLLIDAYSBURG — Borough officials marked Arbor Day with a tree planting ceremony, accompanied by a proclamation to recognize Hollidaysburg’s 35th consecutive year as a Tree City USA.

Members of the Shade Tree Commission, Borough Public Works Department and students from the Christian Home Educators Association all pitched in to plant an October Glory maple tree on the grounds of Highland Hall along Walnut Street.

The Tree City USA program is administered by the nonprofit Arbor Day Foundation, which has promoted sustainable urban forestry since 1972. Municipalities may apply for the designation annually, contingent on meeting four criteria set by the foundation.

Hollidaysburg Mayor Joseph Dodson noted how the Tree City USA award demonstrates the borough’s commitment to the environment.

“We take our trees seriously — we want to keep our town as pretty and beautiful as we can,” Dodson said. “We’ve got a beautiful borough and we want to keep it that way.”

This ongoing commitment is a source of pride for Dodson and his fellow borough officials, he said.

Last year, the borough planted more than 20 new trees across the downtown area, which, according to Dodson, is a “testament” to the hard work of Tree Commission members.

J. Terry Wilt is the chairman of the Shade Tree Commission, where he has served for 35 years. His efforts have been instrumental in maintaining Hollidaysburg’s status as a Tree City USA.

“We have a lot of trees in Hollidaysburg — we enjoy it, it keeps the town nice,” Wilt said.

According to Wilt, it is “very gratifying” to see the Tree Commission’s work receive such positive recognition.

“I’ve been doing this for 30-something years now … we’ve done very well, the borough has done very well,” he said.

This recognition was made possible by the backing of the Hollidaysburg Borough Council, borough manager and mayor, Wilt said.

“They’re really supportive of the Tree Commission, and they give me a lot of help,” he said.

According to Wilt, the borough’s annual Arbor Day celebration is an opportunity to highlight the need for urban forestry.

“As long as I’m here, we’re going to do it,” Wilt said.

Fire/Service Forester Mandy Burgoon supports the Hollidaysburg Shade Tree Commission through her work at DCNR, where she provides expertise to municipal tree boards.

“I’m a resource that they have if they ever need help with anything with trees in their community.”

One of the main facets of this support is helping the borough apply for Tree City USA recognition every year.

“They have to jump through some hoops to be able to qualify … and every year they’ve met this criteria,” Burgoon said. “They get this paperwork in well before it’s due.”

According to Burgoon, this shows that Hollidaysburg officials “care for their community.”