Restore Our Roots

Volunteer Event: Kerr Park Replant + Tree Tendering + Invasive Removal
2023-11-04 10:00 - 13:00 (America/New_York)
Come volunteer to take care of the planting at Kerr Park! No experience required. Best for ages 12+
Activities include:

planting new trees
doing maintenance on tree tubes/shelters (removing vines, straightening)
invasive clearning

Bring:
-Loppers, clippers
-Work Gloves
-Water
No RSVP necssary; Questions? email ROR at RestoreOurRoots@gmail.com

Volunteer Event: Tree Care + Mini Pruning Class- Copeland Run in Downingtown
2024-04-27 10:00 - 13:30 | Beaver Creek Elementary: 601 W Pennsylvania Ave, Downingtown, PA 19335, United States, 601 W Pennsylvania Ave, Downingtown, PA, 19335, United States
Come help the Restore Our Roots team check on the 100s of trees planted in 2022 and get them ready for spring! We’ll remove invasive vines, straighten posts, and clear the next section of invasives for planting! Learn more about the history of this site by visiting this page.
at 12:30pm there will be a ‘tree pruning 101’ class given by the tree commission for the newly transplanted trees out front of Beaver Creek Elementary!
Family-friendly event, come for any part of the timeframe that you are able. Hot cocoa and snacks are provided!
RSVP here if interested
Bring/wear: work gloves, water, clippers to remove vines, boots (some spots are muddy and they help your feet stay protected from prickly vines), we’ll provide the rest.
Questions? email Tara at restoreourroots@gmail.com

Paddle on the Brandywine
2024-06-23 09:00 - 12:30
An Educational Ecology / Land Use Tour
Sunday, June 23

8:30 – 8:45 am – Meet at Northbrook Canoe, 1810 Beagle Rd, West Chester, PA 19382

9:00 am Northbrook will shuttle everyone to Corcoran’s Bridge for a 2 hour paddle, ending back at Northbrook Canoe

11:30 am – Meet at East Branch Brewing Co, 202 E Lancaster Ave, Downingtown, PA 19335

The Paddle: We’ll focus on overlapping environmental & human uses of the Brandywine Creek as a major water conduit in the community. We’ll observe surrounding land uses, historic & current: drinking water treatment, farming irrigation, recreation, fishing, water filtration & ecosystem services.

Tour & Talk: Join us at for lunch at East Branch Brewing Co after the paddle to learn how the brewery is impacted by changes in water quality.

$55 per person includes a single kayak. (Lunch is not included.)
Space is limited to 24 participants. Reserve your spot today!

Garden Tour!
2024-07-20 16:00 - 18:00
Come join Downingtown’s local native plant group Restore Our Roots in partnership with the local Shade Tree Commission in this fundraiser to learn about the home landscape and being pollinator-friendly. Stroll with us through a Downingtown neighborhood where we’ll highlight majestic street trees and visit with several homeowners and their yards for fun and creative ideas you take back to your neck of the woods.
Cost: A donation of any amount supports our efforts to restore wildlife habitat within the Borough and our initiative to become a National Wildlife Federation Community Habitat. If interested, donations will be collected the day of the event.
Registration is maxed at 24 participants so register now! The deadline to register is July 18th. Rain date is Sunday July 21st (same time)
To register:

Complete this registration form
Closer to the date you will receive a confirmation email with more info!

Questions? Email us at RestoreOurRoots@gmail.com (Please note: we are a volunteer organization with full time jobs so we will reply as soon as we can. Thanks for your patience!)

ROR on the Rooftop! Native Plant Night
2024-08-22 18:00 - 19:00 | East Branch Bewing Company, 202 E Lancaster Ave, Downingtown, PA, 19335, United States
What could be better than a sunset, cool sips, and conversation about native plants and wildlife??
As part of the Borough’s certification to become a National Wildlife Federation Community Habitat, ROR is doing a night on the rooftop of East Branch Brew Company, a partner of the initiative.
In this fun and interactive conversation you’ll learn:

Easy tips to live alongside wildlife in your home landscape
How to turn your home landscape into an ecological oasis that benefits humans and all life
Ideas for lawn conversion
How to certify your own yard, school, business, or place of worship

Free event, space is limited, drinks not included.
Registration is recommended and will help us plan for the event as well as notify registrants if we need to push indoors or cancel! All are welcome.
Questions? Email us at restoreourroots@gmail.com

Yard Sale Fundraiser!
2024-08-31 09:00 - 14:00 | 211 West Pennsylvania Ave. Downingtown, PA 19335
Come see a pollinator garden and find something cool at our yard sale fundraiser! Partial proceeds will go towards supporting our initiative in the Borough to certify as a community wildlife habitat!

Thanks so much!

Volunteer Tree Care Night! Copeland Run Site
2024-09-12 18:00 - 19:30 | Beaver Creek Elementary: 601 W Pennsylvania Ave, Downingtown, PA 19335, United States, 601 W Pennsylvania Ave, Downingtown, PA, 19335, United States
Seeking VolunTREEers!
Copeland Run Tree Care Day
Join site Captain Tara Muenz to help with taking care of 100s of trees along Copeland Run! To learn more about this site visit our project page.
Tree care includes:

straigtening tree shelters (or adding new stakes, zip ties)
removing or adding bird protection nets to top of shelters
removing vines from shelters
weed wacking around tubes (if you have one, bring it!)

We have about 300 tree/shrub shelters that are checked monthly and this will be one of our bigger checks before the fall season. We need all hands on deck!
Bring:

work gloves
water
bug repellent
weed wacker if you have one

ROR will bring:

work gloves
clippers, snippers
one weed wacker

RSVP here to let us know you’ll be there!
Questions? Email us at restoreourroots@gmail.com
Time: 6-7:30pm
Meet in front parking lot of Beaver Creek Elementary

Paw Paw Festival
2024-09-28 11:00 - 13:00 | Bondsville Mille Park, 1647 Bondsville Rd, Downingtown, PA 19335, 1647 Bondsville Rd, Downingtown, PA, 19335, United States
Join Restore Our Roots at Bondsville Mill’s first Paw Paw Festival!

Downingtown Fall Fest: Native plant sale, pollinator gardens and more!
2024-10-06 11:00 - 16:00 | on Green Street and East Pennsylvania Avenue in the Borough of Downingtown, Chester County, PA, downingtown, pennsylvania, 19335
Restore Our Roots will make an appearance in partnership with the Downingtown Shade Tree Commission at Fall Fest 2024! Meet members of both groups, volunteer opportunities, learn about certifying your yard to be wildlife-friendly, and we’ll have some native plants for sale as well as children’s activities, it will be so fun!

Learn more about the event, and we can’t wait to see you!

Friends Fall Festival: Native Plant Sale, Hershey Tree Tour and more!
2024-10-12 09:00 - 16:00 | 800 East Lancaster Avenue Downingtown, PA 19335, 800 East Lancaster Avenue, Downingtown, PA, 19335, United States
Restore Our Roots will make an appearance at the 2024 Friends Fall Festival with a booth that has it all! Native plants for sale, Hershey Tree tours, kids activities, pollinator garden information, and us!

To see more about the event visit the Friends Fall Festival website page.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Tree Planting: Johnsontown Park
2024-11-02 10:00 - 13:00 | Johsontown Park, Downingtown
Seeking VolunTREEers!
Johsontown Park Tree Planting Day
Join us for our first planting at this park!
What to expect:

Planting of 100 + trees/shrubs along the Brandywine and within the park. We will also add tree shelters, stakes, and bird nets
Come for as little or long as you would like
Family-friendly event
Plants come from a DCNR grant (yay!)

We need all hands on deck!
Bring:

work gloves
water
shovel

ROR will bring:

work gloves
clippers, snippers
extra shovels
mallets

RSVP here to let us know you’ll be there!
Questions? Email us at restoreourroots@gmail.com
Time: 10:00am-1pm
Meet in parking lot at Johnsontown Park (or find us if arriving later; you’ll see us out there!)

Volunteers Needed: Tree Care + Planting at Marinelli Park
2024-11-09 10:00 - 11:30 | Marinelli Park, 399 Lincoln Hwy, Downingtown, PA, 19335-2521, United States
Join the Restore Our Roots team as we tuck in the trees and shrubs for the winter, replacing tree shelters,stakes and bird nets, while also planting new trees and shrubs. No RSVP needed, all are welcome. Minors (under the age of 18 years) must be accompanied by an adult.
Date: Saturday, November 9th
Time: 10am-11:30am (we may end earlier depending on the number of volunteers)
Location: Marinelli Park in Downingtown (across from Victory Brewing Co.) : 399 Lincoln Hwy, Downingtown, PA 19335 ; arrive to the parking lot and look for the ROR team!
Bring: Shovel and work gloves if you have it

Questions? email us at restoreourroots@gmail.com

Tree Care & Pollinator Garden Site Prep
2025-04-19 10:00 - 12:00 | Johnsontown Park, 100 Viaduct Ave, Downingtown, PA, 19335, United States
Tree care & pollinator garden site prep in Johnsontown Park
We’re not quite done yet with site prep for the pollinator garden. Please keep saving that plain brown cardboard!
Pollinator garden site prep: Sheet mulching with cardboard and leaf mulch to smother grass near the River Station bridge. This hands-on, family friendly community event will be a great way to learn how to create a pollinator garden, step by step. This event is all about site preparation, and you’ll be able to take what you learn back to your own home, to create a native garden of your very own.
Tree care: We’ll be checking on the tree saplings that we planted last fall. Some need a little pick-me-up due to soggy site conditions, and we’ll be gently lifting and backfilling with additional soil.
Remove invasives: We’ll be removing the invasive Japanese pachysandra under the bridge and replacing it with native Packera aurea.
What to bring:

Garden rake, pitchfork, or trowel
Plain brown cardboard – the plainer, the better! No wax coating, and as little ink as possible. (No Chewy boxes, please, because they have too much ink, but most Amazon boxes will be ok. If you’ve recently purchased a large item like a fridge or other household appliance, that carboard would be very helpful.)

Please RSVP to let us know you’re coming.

Special thank you to our partners for making this project possible:
PA Native Plant Society for grant funding
Xerces Society for the native pollinator plant kit
MSE Landscape Associates, Mark Eberhardt; Principal Landscape Designer in partnership with ROR & the Downingtown Shade Tree Commission
Downingtown Borough & Public Works for boulders, leaf mulch, cardboard storage and for all the support
All of our community volunteers

Community Pollinator Garden Planting Day 1: Johnsontown Park
2025-05-17 09:00 - 12:00 | Johsontown Park, Downingtown
Join the Restore Our Roots group as we plant the first layer of the new community garden at Johnsontown Park! No prior experience needed, and all ages welcome.
Please RSVP so we can contact you in case we need to move to the rain date. More details are below!
Date: Saturday, May 17th (Rain Date: May 18th)
PS. We also have a second event to plant on May 31st (same RSVP as above)
Time: 9am-noon (may go longer depending on amount of people power; come for as little or long as you’d like)
Where: Johnsontown Park in Downingtown (Viaduct Avenue; by the bridge that crosses over E. Branch Brandywine Creek)
What to bring: work gloves, shovel, trowel (we will also have some of these available), water bottle/snacks.
What to wear: Dress for bending and planting in the soil! Sunscreen, hat, etc.
Questions? email us at Restoreourroots@gmail.com
Special thank you to our partners for making this project possible:
PA Native Plant Society for grant funding
MSE Landscape Associates, Mark Eberhardt; Principal Landscape Designer in partnership with ROR & the Downingtown Shade Tree Commission
Downingtown Borough & Public Works for boulders, leaf mulch, cardboard storage and for all the support
All of our community volunteers

Community Pollinator Garden Planting & Mini Workshop: Johnsontown Park
2025-05-31 10:00 - 12:00 | Johsontown Park, Downingtown
Join the Restore Our Roots group as we go over the A,B,Cs of how to plant a pollinator garden at Johnsontown Park! This will be a more in depth experience going over how to plan and create your very own pollinator garden at home, neighborhoor, school, or place of workship. No prior experience needed, and all ages welcome.
Please RSVP so we can contact you in case we need to move to the rain date. More details are below!
Date: Saturday, May 31st (Rain Date: June 1st)
Time: 10am-noon
Where: Johnsontown Park in Downingtown (Viaduct Avenue; by the bridge that crosses over E. Branch Brandywine Creek)
What to bring: work gloves, shovel, trowel (we will also have some of these available), water bottle/snacks.
What to wear: Dress for bending and planting in the soil! Sunscreen, hat, etc.
Questions? email us at Restoreourroots@gmail.com
Special thank you to our partners for making this project possible:
Xerces Society for the native pollinator plant kit
MSE Landscape Associates, Mark Eberhardt; Principal Landscape Designer in partnership with ROR & the Downingtown Shade Tree Commission
Downingtown Borough & Public Works for boulders, leaf mulch, cardboard storage and for all the support
All of our community volunteers

Pollinator Garden Care Night: Johnsontown Park
2025-08-07 17:30 - 18:30
Calling all weed warriors! We sure could use help getting the new pollinator gardens established out at Johnsontown park!
Enjoy time with the Restore Our Roots crew and give the garden some care and see the pollinators (butterflies, bees, birds, turtles!)
We’ll be out there around 5:30pm and stay as long as you’d like. If interested in being notified of our garden care nights, feel free to let us know via this form and we’ll keep you posted on future weeding nights: https://forms.gle/YUhoQ7hvPMKGZTuS6
What to bring: hand trowel, gardening gloves, small bucket for weeds, knee pad (optional), sense of humor and water!
questions? email us at restoreourroots@gmail.com
Thanks in advance and we’ll see you out there (at the bridge that crosses over the river).

Garden Tour!
2025-08-23 16:00 - 18:00
Come join Downingtown’s local native plant group, Restore Our Roots, in partnership with MSE Landscape Associates and Dressler Estates, in this community garden fundraiser! You’ll learn about the home landscape and how simple changes can be more pollinator-friendly. Stroll with us through a Downingtown neighborhood (near Marinelli Park) where we’ll highlight majestic street trees and visit with homeowners and their yards for fun and creative ideas you take back to your neck of the woods. that make not only your yard more enjoyable, but will also benefit water and wildlife. We’ll also review the easy-peasy ways you can get your own yard certified as wildlife-friendly through the National Wildlife Federation’s program.
Cost: A donation of any amount supports our efforts to restore wildlife habitat within the Borough and our initiative to become a National Wildlife Federation Community Habitat. Donations will be collected at the event.
Registration is maxed at 24 participants so register now! The last day to register is August 22nd (5pm ET). Rain date is Sunday August 24th (same time)
To register:

Complete this registration form
Closer to the date you will receive an email with more info!

Questions? Email us at RestoreOurRoots@gmail.com (Please note: we are a volunteer organization and will reply as soon as we can. Thanks for your patience!)

Paw Paw Festival
2025-09-27 11:00 - 14:00 | Bondsville Mille Park, 1647 Bondsville Rd, Downingtown, PA 19335, 1647 Bondsville Rd, Downingtown, PA, 19335, United States

Friends Fall Fest Downingtown + Native Plant Sale!
2025-10-11 09:00 - 16:00
Come see the ROR crew at our table with native plants for sale including paw paws! We’ll have some other fun things for sale too + we’re happy to chat about anything native plant! We’ll also do a few Hershey Tree tours (time still TBD).

Volunteer Event: Tree Care Morning at Beaver Creek Elementary
2025-11-01 09:00 - 12:00 | Beaver Creek Elementary: 601 W Pennsylvania Ave, Downingtown, PA 19335, United States, 601 W Pennsylvania Ave, Downingtown, PA, 19335, United States
Join the Restore Our Roots team to check on the 100s of trees planted in 2022 and get them ready for winter! We’ll check on the tree tubes, remove any vines and straighten stakes. We will also remove invasive plants from that back forest edge and move some of the outdoor learning spaces to another area of the school. Learn more about the history of this site by visiting this page.
Family-friendly event; come for any part of the timeframe that suits you. Lunch provide by BCE PTO!
RSVP here to let us know you’re interested and we will email you closer to the date with more details.
Bring/wear: work gloves, water, clippers to remove vines, string trimmer if you have one, boots (some spots are muddy and they help your feet stay protected from prickly vines), we’ll provide the rest.
Questions? email Tara at restoreourroots@gmail.com

Volunteer Event: Tuck in the pollinator plants for the winter!
2025-12-13 10:00 - 12:00 | 122 viaduct ave, Downingtown, PA 19335
Join the ROR team for one more garden event, tucking in the plants at the new Johnsontown Park community native plant garden!
We’ll be adding another layer of leaf-litter mulch to create a good buffer against winter chill and to provide habitat for wildlife.
RSVP here to let us know you’re coming (and if we need to reach you to cancel)
Bring (if you have it):

Wheelbarrow
Pitch Fork
Rake
Garden gloves
Dress in layers!

We’ll bring the Hot Chocolate!
Meet at Johnsontown Park, out at the garden, which is at the bridge going over the river.
Questions? Email us at Restoreourroots@gmail.com
Weather Plan: if things shift to bitter weather and we need to cancel we will reach out by the prior Friday
