More than 500 volunteers gathered in Washington D.C. for the National Association of Landscape Professionals’ (NALP) annual Renewal & Remembrance event, where landscape professionals throughout the country descend on Arlington National Cemetery and the National Mall for a day of service. Volunteers spent the morning edging, mulching, aerating and more.
“We’ve been doing this now for 27 years, logged over 50,000 volunteer hours in those 27 years,” said Britt Wood, CEO of the NALP. “People love it, they come back every year and we continue to grow in size and scope.”
In addition to the number of volunteers and the size of the projects that continue to expand over the years, NALP president Mike Bogan, CEO of LandCare in Frederick, Md., (No. 12 on the 2023 LM150 list) says the association continually sees an increase in the amount of veterans who want to contribute and join this event. Before this year’s event officially kicked off, Bogan invited the veterans volunteering at the Washington Monument to lead the group in the Pledge of Allegiance. Bogan explained how special it was to watch a sea of veterans in the crowd make their way to the front.
“That was amazing when I asked the veterans to come up; I think a third of the crowd joined me up at the front of the group,” Bogan shared. “It’s so meaningful to them, not only to be here and participate, but also to see how many people revere their service and appreciate what they’ve done. It was awesome to see such a big group today.”
Bob Grover, past NALP president and owner of Pacific Landscape Management in Hillsboro, Ore., (No. 66 on the 2023 LM150 list) recalled his first time participating and how the veterans at that event expressed their appreciation to NALP’s volunteers for their hard work and that stuck with him in the years since.
“I just can’t say enough about what we do; it’s more symbolic than anything of the honor and respect of our nation’s capital and the honor and respect of those fallen at Arlington,” Grover said. “I’m really, really proud of our association for hosting this event and the 500 people who take time out of their schedule to come and do this.”
See more from this year’s Renewal and Remembrance event here.
