LAHAINA — After the successful launch of the “La’au Ha’awi Maui — Gifting Trees for Maui” initiative at the Ka Hale a Ke Ola Homeless Resource Center on Saturday, Nov. 28, two “Tree Gifting” events will be held for the Maui community.

On Saturday, Dec. 12, the first tree gifting location will be set up by the Rotary Club of Kihei-Wailea in South Maui.

The St. Theresa Church parking lot will have a tent and booth to distribute FREE tree saplings starting at 10 a.m until all of the saplings are distributed.

Social distancing protocols will be in place for the selection and pick up of trees. There will be 100 fruit-bearing tree saplings available, and selection will be limited to two saplings per person.

On the same day in West Maui, there will be a booth set up at the Napili Farmer’s Market starting at 8 a.m.

This booth will be manned by members of the Rotary Club of Lahaina Sunset, and 100 fruit-bearing tree saplings will be available at this site.

An Upcountry site and date will be announced for a similar tree-gifting event before the holidays.

Along with the trees, the recipients will receive a simple planting and “caring for your tree” manual. Donations are welcome but not required to receive the gift of a tree.

This collaborative tree gifting project is a joint effort by the nine Rotary Clubs of Maui, Ohana Gardens and Uncle George Kahumoku Jr.

Mariko Higashi, project coordinator, said, “All of our partners believe that the solution to island-wide food security and global climate change are one in the same — creating carbon-rich, fertile soils for local food production. We know that our island can grow food year-round, and our goal is to provide upwards of 1,000 trees to support this two-month effort.”

For more information on the South Maui event, contact Rich Wu at richwu@hawaiilife.com.

For more information on the West Maui gifting site, contact Higashi at marikoinmaui@gmail.com.

For more information about making a donation to support this project, go to https://mauiohanagardens.org/treeplanting/.