Kansas City’s Parks & Recreation Department celebrated Arbor Day on April 12th with a tree-planting event in Loose Park. A Sugar Maple tree was planted to honor Dona Boley, author, historian, advocate for the Parks and Boulevard System, and tree planting champion.
About Dona R. Boley
Dona’s advocacy for planting trees and for George E. Kessler’s Parks and Boulevard System began in 1979 when she and her husband moved into a 70-year-old house on Harrison Boulevard in the Hyde Park neighborhood (HPNA). She gained an appreciation for trees while growing up on a multi-family farm where the homestead’s very large lawn contained a sizable variety of tree species. In addition, her extended family exemplified a proactive attitude along with a strong commitment to the community.
Dona’s first major tree planting project was a model program in which the parks department obtained and planted 384 street trees, while the residents committed to watering and trimming them for three years. As a result of this initiative, HPNA was awarded the 1987 Governor’s Town Treescape Award. Dona also initiated an HPNA cost-sharing program for the purchase of front yard trees. Additionally, she played key roles in several HPNA tree-planting projects and secured funding through a TRIM grant, a community services grant, and a ReBuildKC grant, which facilitated the planting of 272 trees in the Gillham Road parkway. Dona began tracking large tree-planting projects using a spreadsheet that included GPS locations and tree species. Beyond tree plantings, she coordinated the removal of dead or dying street trees and initiated the removal of bush honeysuckle through PIAC funding, resident volunteer efforts, and volunteer events sponsored by Home Depot. She also successfully obtained over $1.3 million in PIAC funds for Harrison Parkway and Gillham Road parkway improvements.
Dona played a key role in establishing the Kessler Society, an advocacy group dedicated to preserving the historic Parks and Boulevard System. She facilitated a partnership between the Kessler Society and the parks department to create commemorative gardens, leading to the planting of 135 trees and the installation of 43 benches. Additionally, she launched and managed the “I Need a Street Tree” program, which resulted in the planting of 207 new street trees throughout the city.
In addition to numerous presentations on the Parks and Boulevard System, Dona published an article in The Jackson County Historical Society Journal and co-authored Kansas City’s Parks and Boulevards: Images of America, which won two awards.
About Tree City USA
Kansas City is a Tree City USA Community. The City received its designation from the organization in 1988. To be a Tree City USA Community, a city must meet four standards: have a tree board or department, have a tree care ordinance, a comprehensive forestry program, and an Arbor Day observance and proclamation.
About Arbor Day
The Arbor Day Foundation is the world’s oldest and largest tree-planting organization. The foundation began in 1872 with a mission “to inspire people to plant, nurture, and celebrate trees”. The Arbor Day holiday was founded in 1872 by J. Sterling Morton in Nebraska City, Nebraska.
