Get to know more about one of our special Tree Amigos, Brandon! As one of our younger volunteers, we want to highlight his commitment to this organization.
What does it take to be a Tree Amigo? To become a Tree Amigo you must go through a 5 session training. The training consists of an overview of our organization, a community nursery work day, a community planting event, a tree care and stewardship class, and a Lawn Busters lawn conversion project. In this interview we talk about getting involved with OCF, serving the community, and other fun topics.
Ice breakers / Intro to Brandon:
If you could have any superpower what would it be?
Telepathy, as long as I can turn it off at will. It seems like the most useful superpower.
If you could have one song play every time you entered a room what would it be?
Never Gonna Give You Up by Rick Astley
If you could live in a movie which one would it be?
DC and Marvel both have a lot of near world ending experiences. Okay the world ends many times in those universes so, uh, probably not those. There can’t be many others though. DC seems slightly safer though, so that one.
What do you put into the bowl first, milk or cereal?
I don’t use milk in my cereal at all. I eat it plain with a lot of water but I don’t put the water in my cereal.
What are 5 things you would want to have during a zombie apocalypse?
A spear, cause it would actually kill zombies faster than a gun, several years supply of food and water, a tent, farming tools, and a lot of friends.
Tell me about yourself. Is there anything you want people to know about you? What grade you are in, hobbies, if you have any pets?
I’m in eighth grade and my hobbies are aquariums and gardening. Oh and doing surveys, well, doing surveys for money. Oh and sport video games, I especially like puzzle games like tetris. I also play the flute. I’ve been playing for the past few years. I do have one pet. Well actually it depends how you look at it. I have a beta fish, six shrimp, and probably like 20 something aquatic snails in my aquarium. It's doing pretty well so far.
What inspires you?
Being happy and making other people happy. And a person who inspires me? Maybe Stephen Hawking.
Involvement with OCF:
Do you have a favorite shrub/tree? Favorite tool?
I don’t have a favorite shrub, but I have a favorite tree - the Monterey pine. Right now my favorite tool is probably a spade. I don’t do as much gardening on the ground nowadays. I used to do more but nowadays I stick to container gardening
When did you start volunteering with OCF and why did you choose to start volunteering with OCF?
The first time I volunteered was maybe over a year ago for a Boy Scouts thing. Then I went back to volunteering with OCF for a Boy Scouts badge, but now I’m just doing it because it’s fun.
What is your favorite thing about OCF and being a Tree Amigo?
Well, I Iike plants so mostly that. I enjoy planting plants, but I’ve also spent a lot of time just researching them.
What motivated you to become a tree amigo rather than serving as a volunteer?
I think it was because it was on the website, the OCF website as a way to volunteer. There aren’t that many volunteer opportunities available, well there's actually a couple I think, and the Tree Amigos is just an additional one.
How are you enjoying the process to become a Tree Amigo?
Well it’s pretty fun! But I would say that presenting a slide show over zoom is not as engaging as doing it in person.
How has OCF impacted you? / Has it inspired you to pursue a certain topic/career?
Well I did do a fair bit of research for my blog posts like the one on the Monterey Pine.
Do you see yourself using the experience you’ve gotten from OCF in the future?
Yeah I think I do. Gardening is something I’ve enjoyed my entire life and I think OCF will help me.
What advice/tips would you tell someone who is interested in volunteering (or becoming a TA) that has never worked with OCF before?
Well I’d say volunteering is definitely worth it and the Tree Amigo program is pretty nice.
Thank you for all you do Brandon! We appreciate you!