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65 YELLOW SPRINGS NEWS The GUIDE to YELLOW SPRINGS 2019 – 20 The Yellow Springs Community Foundation (YSCF) is focused on two key activities for our commu- nity; we manage gifts and we direct grants and scholarships for Yellow Springs and Miami Township. Last year the YSCF managed approximately $14 million in endowments and funds, received $760,000 in gifts and made dis- tributions and grants of $527,000 to our community, with 80% of our expenses staying local. Our focus areas of giving: Education, Seniors, Environment and the Arts, supporting many of our local nonprofit organizations through YSGivingTuesday, endow- ments, agency funds, grants and awards. Apply for a grant today or make a tax deductible donation at www.YSCF.org Yellow Springs Community Foundation 108 Dayton St. • P.O. Box 55 • Yellow Springs, OH 45387 • 937-767-2655 Focused on the causes you care about for our Community since 1974 JOINUS! Music that motivates and inspires our communities towards justice, diversity and equality as we strive for peace and build our web of mutuality. Catherine Roma 513.560.9082 worldhousechoir@gmail.com www. worldhousechoir.org www.facebook.com/ worldhousechoir By YS NEWS STAFF A decision by the Village of Yellow Springs to remove the Bradford pear trees that lined the streets downtown received disapproval from villagers in July 2012, some of whom took to the streets in protest. Elizabeth Price, Chris and Whitney Till and Matteo Gregor were among those talking to passersby about the Village’s plan. Some held signs and others engaged residents in conversation about alternatives to the tree removal. Local artists also adorned trees with messages like, "Who speaks for the trees?" The previous month the Village had announced a plan to remove the trees as part of a downtown streetscape overhaul that includes burying power lines and repairing sidewalks. Bradford pears are a native of China and are considered to be invasive in the Midwest. More than a dozen pear trees downtown were eventually cut down and replaced with native and urban-hardy species. Old growth osage Protesters temporarily halted the cutting down of two large Osage orange trees in King’s Yard in September 2001, when three local teenagers climbed into a tree while workers took a break. Ye Olde Trail Tavern had decided to cut down the trees to accommodate an expansion that included the addition of a handicapped-accessible entrance. Its owner at the time also said its insurance company required that the trees be removed. The protest followed the failure of the quickly organized Ye Olde Tree Commit - Speaking for the trees tee to save the trees through government intervention. The teens — Evan Hagberg, Gregory Alain Coates and Shannon Wheeler — eventually came down when Greene County Sheriff’s deputies and Miami Township Fire-Rescue arrived on scene. They were charged with disorderly conduct, but the YSPD later dropped the charges. Longtime peace activ - ist Terry Snider, who was attempting to pass the protestors blankets, was arrested and initially charged with criminal trespassing. The trees were felled. Letter writers to the News the following week reported that one of the trees was estimated to be 188 years old, or from around 1812. And an editorial by then-News editor Robert Mihalek simply included a photo of the trees before they were cut down under the heading, “In Memoriam.”  ♦ PHOTOS: LEFT BY LAUREN HEATON; RIGHT BY GAIL D. TAYLOR LEFT: Elizabeth Price urged the Village of Yellow Springs to not replace Bradford pear trees downtown in 2012.  RIGHT: Evan Hagberg, Gregory Alain Coates and Shannon Wheeler climbed into an Osage orange tree slated to be cut down near Ye Olde Trail Tavern in 2001. In both cases, the trees were felled.