Tampa General Hospital Awarded TD Tree Days Grant to Enhance Tampa’s Tree Canopy

TGH received a grant from TD Bank to plant new trees and shrubs at TGH Healthpark as part of an effort to expand green spaces in underprivileged neighborhoods.

Tampa, FL — Nov. 11, 2024 – TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank®, has selected Tampa General Hospital (TGH) to receive a 2024 TD Tree Days grant. Working with the Arbor Day Foundation, TD Tree Days is a community-based program that aims to grow green spaces and urban forests in primarily disadvantaged neighborhoods. The grant will allow TGH's staff and volunteers to plant 43 trees and 115 shrubs on November 8 at the TampaWell Community Garden & Food Pharmacy at TGH Healthpark, located at 5802 N. 30th Street.

The space is part of TampaWell, TGH’s partnership with the City of Tampa, to make it the ultimate wellness destination in the United States. Tampa General works closely with City of Tampa Parks and Recreation department and Tampa’s Sustainability and Resilience Officer in a sustained effort to improve green spaces and trails throughout the city; to promote outdoor activity and respite for community members; and to create a shady, healthier atmosphere for all who live or work in Tampa.

"TD Bank is dedicated to helping our communities thrive, in part by working with organizations like TGH, to develop healthy green spaces for everyone. We are thrilled to hold our 13^th annual volunteer TD Tree Days, including our 2024 event in Tampa and other cities across TD Bank's Maine to Florida footprint," said Paige Carlson-Heim, Head of Social Impact at TD Bank. "We are grateful for our volunteers who, through these tree and shrub planting events, are helping to build a more vibrant and sustainable tomorrow.”

TD Tree Days, the bank's flagship volunteer and urban greening program, has brought together thousands of volunteers across the United States to boost community green spaces. Since 2011, over 18,000 trees have been planted in the United States through TD Tree Days.

This year, TGH is one of 19 organizations and municipalities in the U.S. awarded an annual TD Tree Days grant.

“We are so grateful for this gift to support our community in East Tampa,” said Rachel Bozich, ambulatory project manager at Tampa General Hospital. “Planting trees helps improve air quality, reduces heat and provides green spaces for physical and mental well-being. TD Bank’s grant allows us to focus on creating a healthier community in one of Tampa’s most vulnerable areas.”

TD Tree Days is one of many programs supporting the TD Ready Commitment, TD Bank's corporate citizenship platform that makes strategic investments across four drivers of change in the communities TD serves to help build a more inclusive and sustainable future. The TD Tree Days program supports the TD Ready Commitment's Vibrant Planet driver of change, helping to improve the quality of our environment and address environmental inequities so people and economies can thrive.

In addition to Tampa, TD Tree Days events are scheduled in these communities in 2024: East Boston, MA; Lewiston, ME; Westbrook, ME; Oakland, NJ; Valley Stream, NY; New York, NY; Pennsauken Twp/Camden, NJ; Jeffersonville, Pa; Philadelphia, PA; Wilmington, DE; Candler, North Carolina; Columbia, SC; Greenville, SC; Washington, DC; Eatonville, FL; Miami, FL; Jacksonville, FL; Detroit, MI.