WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah (ABC4) – 50 volunteers gathered on Sunday, August 13, to plant trees in West Valley City.
Members of the student volunteer group ASEZ STAR, part of the World Mission Society Church of God, along with community members and West Valley City employees planted 15 trees along 5600 West and in Centennial Park.
Youth aged 12 -16 led the group and the trees were donated by WVC. The group ASEZ is a worldwide group, that focuses its efforts on cleaning up streets, parks, and community spaces. ASEZ is an acronym for “Save Earth from A to Z.” The local group does volunteer projects every few months.
“Our student volunteers take the lead to bring awareness by participating in environmental initiatives on a global scale to serve the local communities and to demonstrate the youth can help save the world through their deeds,” shares Cassandra Todd a leader for the West Valley group. “Through all of our collective efforts, we hope to encourage many other student youth volunteers to rise up and make the world a better environment for all to enjoy in the future.”
Todd is proud of the group she works with and the way the city has responded and helped.
“The purpose of our volunteer service is ‘to bring about changes in making the earth a better place by practicing Mother’s love,’” said Todd. “The [tree planting] event went really well. We have worked with West Valley City many times, and each time our participation has increased. It is nice to see students giving back to the community and joining in this green world movement we are carrying out.”
According to a press release, The World Mission Society Church of God is devoted to community service, with more than 8,000 branches in 175 countries all throughout the world. Due to great efforts, the church received The Green Apple Award for Voluntary Service in 2018, one of the world’s four major environmental awards. In addition, we’ve received the President’s Volunteer Service Award Gold in Salt Lake City every year from 2017 through 2023.
