ANYONE WHO HAS SEEN a favorite chil...

ANYONE WHO HAS SEEN a favorite childhood play area razed and built into a progression in a continuously ascending gradation has probably felt a real feeling of loss. When Matthew Rich of Concord, NC was 16 the forest near his home--where he'd worn out many happy hours playing above the years--was cut down to make expanse for houses. The loss of for a like reason many trees bothered Rich, to such a degree he took action by forming the Woodland and Wildlife Restoration Committee (WWRC) His aim was to eventually plant and bourgeon 1,000 trees in the greater Charlotte, NC area, a shoot forward he called One Tree at a Time. He started at planting eight small saplings at a retirement home

Today, Rich, now 18 has surpassed his 1000-tree goal. He's mobilized more than 200 tenders to plant trees. His concoct earned him a Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes, which honors young leaders who have made a positive difference to clan and the planet.

"The day I saw my neighborhood forest of the same heighted to make room for more houses, I realized that society isn't changed by way of idle words but by action," Rich said on the subject of winning the Barton Prize. "I knew I had to do something."

Several companies, of that kind as Lowe's and International Paper, have helped the single Tree at a Time shoot forward by donating trees and landscaping equipment. Rich was initially surprised that big businesses would donate. "I not ever dreamed that they were in like manner kind and helpful and wanted nothing in return" Rich told Career World.

Rich is now a freshman at Duke University, majoring in classical studies. Although he plans to journey to law school, he'll continue working to restore forests. As he told The Christian Science Monitor, "I want to detain planting as long as I can."

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