Before the Bulldozer

Chinmayo and the Cherry Tree she rescued – Tim Dustrude photo

I got a chance to chat with Chinmayo the other day, and to see the Cherry Tree she saved from the bulldozer. She explained that one day last year when riding her bike to town, she noticed a cherry tree growing just off the side of the road on some undeveloped land, and sure enough, it bore cherries in the summer.

Kels Boreen helps out by digging up the tree to transplant it – Chinmayo photo

Then in the fall a notice went up on the property about a coming land use action – The land was about to be developed so Chinmayo asked around, got permission from all the necessary places, found some help and dug that tree up and had it transplanted to her yard. That was in March and the tree appears to be thriving in its new home. It even has cherries! (see photo below)

Its new home is the “drainage pond” on the corner of the Sunrise Neighborhood Development. You know those pits that are usually full of rocks or gravel, off on a corner of a subdivision, with a chain link fence around them more often than not… Well this particular drainage pond is a far cry from that. It is its own little thriving ecosystem with trees, shrubs, flowers, bees, butterflies, dragonflies and birds – because Chinmayo keeps adding cool stuff to it.

This is the Cherry Tree’s original home, shown “after the bulldozer”. Soon to be a new neighborhood – Tim Dustrude photo

But the cherry tree thing got her to thinking – “What if we could all be aware like I was, that the bulldozers are coming, and be able to do a ‘walk-through’ of an area ahead of time, to find treasures like this to rescue?”

Cherries growing in a new home – Chinmayo photo

It’s only in the ‘idea’ stage at this point, but it would be a group or movement of some kind called “Before the Bulldozer” and would allow friends and neighbors the opportunity to potentially do just as Chinmayo did with the cherry tree. If that interests you, she would love to hear from you. Send her an email at
chinmayoart [@] gmail [.] com.

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