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Shade trees benefit Fresno County community health

By Victoire S. Chochezi, RCAC public affairs specialist

Chinese Pistachio trees used to provide shade

San Joaquin leadership development training group planted 50 trees in their town to improve health and walking conditions for farm workers and their families.

“With a population slightly over 3,600, San Joaquin is the smallest city in Fresno County,” according to Amarpreet Dhaliwal, mayor of San Joaquin.

Small rural towns in Fresno County are no stranger to hardship. In a July 26, San Francisco Chronicle article entitled, “Mendota: a town scraping bottom” Kevin Fagin reported, “In the worst national economic crisis since the Great Depression, there are few better illustrations of the resultant human suffering than Mendota, where 95 percent of the population is Latino and 42 percent of residents live below poverty level.”

Some of the problems these towns face include the housing market downturn, high foreclosure rates, high unemployment and a three-year drought, which has reduced farmers’ ability to produce crops at their normal yields. Such problems require strong leadership to resolve satisfactorily. With this realization, last year a group of community health promoters from San Joaquin and nearby Mendota requested Rural Community Assistance Corporation’s leadership training. Known as promotores, the group was participating in the Agricultural Worker Health Initiative supported by The California Endowment.

The training offers a comprehensive curriculum delivered in roughly 64 hours of instruction, which includes topics, such as project planning, development, implementation, fundraising and marketing, recruiting volunteers, conflict management and identifying available assets. Participants conceive and design a small, inexpensive (less than $12,000) visible project that benefits their community. At the end of the training, participants are given one year to implement the plan. They must raise the money, obtain community participation and use their newly acquired leadership skills.

Celebration on San Joaquin's Main Street
Photo taken by Victoire Chochezi

The San Joaquin and Mendota group graduated from the training in October 2008 and completed their project in August 2009. They held a celebration on San Joaquin’s Main Street and presented Isais Ramirez, owner of Main Street’s Ramirez Restaurant with an award for helping sponsor the project and donating a tree.

“I just enjoyed the class so much. The project was great, but I just really enjoyed all the information that was brought to us,” said Barbara Watkins, San Joaquin community resident and Garden Valley Homes Apartment complex manager. Watkins is the only group member who is not a farm worker and whose primary language is English. “There was such a good group of people who participated; their hearts were really in it. They were willing to take what they learned and put it into action.”

“Overall, it was very productive. Whenever we ran into a stumbling block, we would find another way to do it,” Watkins said.

The group presented their ideas to the city and area schools. They planted the Chinese Pistachio, which was recommended by Tree Fresno.

“It is a good, urban tree,” Watkins said. “The tree doesn’t require a lot of water and doesn’t run deep roots that would interfere with plumbing.”

“San Joaquin Elementary School took at least nine trees. Student volunteers helped plant the trees and the city donated fertilizer,” said Julia Hernandez, San Joaquin city council member. “The remaining trees were given to the city and planted around town where families tend to walk, such as near a community clinic and a strip mall.”

Summer heat is extreme in San Joaquin and Mendota and farm workers are at high risk for heat stroke, so shade trees serve a vital role in the community. They beautify the community and provide a much-needed respite from the summer sun, thereby potentially improving community health.

According to Hernandez, influenced by the passion and commitment of the leadership training group, the city formed a beautification committee and partnered with Garden Valley Homes to educate families about how to maintain the trees. Additionally, the city is working to put in crosswalks and plant more trees with watering systems as they construct new developments.

Participants in the leadership group are planning to plant another 50 trees next year. They are sharing what they have learned with a neighboring, small, farm worker community, Firebaugh. Also, they plan to put together a small newsletter to circulate between the three communities.

“Right now, the promotores in San Joaquin, Firebaugh and Mendota are planning more projects. They have learned to be more analytical. They do more brainstorming and think about who to involve in their planning. These volunteers have received strong support from businesses and the community, which encourages them and motivates them to want to do more,” she added.

Leadership program graduates are sharing what they learned with the promotores from all three communities.

“Promotores and RCAC leadership program graduates are now registering others to vote. They are considering running for positions, such as city council. They are meeting, networking and collaborating with other agencies to coordinate services and help each other make all the organizations stronger,” said Angelica Larios, San Joaquin community resource liaison and leadership program participant from Mendota.

The promotores have demonstrated that a small group can make an impact, especially in a small rural town. They have broadened their network and interacted with city officials to create change and bring their vision to fruition. They say that they are empowered and excited about applying the skills they learned in the leadership class to make more improvements in their community.

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