World Environmental Day and the 150th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi celebrations supported by the Consulate General of India, Chicago and in partnership with the Village of Skokie at the Gandhi Statue in Skokie
Skokie IL: World Environment Day and to commemorate the 150th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, Members of Gandhi Memorial Chicago [GMC], supported by the Consulate General of India [CGI], Chicago and in partnership with the Village of Skokie at Gandhi Statue in Heritage Park at McCormick Blvd' Tree Planting Event was on Wednesday, June 05, 2019 at 11:30 noon.
It will rain. It will not rain. It will be a stormy day. It will not be a stormy day. The hide and seek like weather forecasts for June 5, 2019 included all possibilities.
However, the encouraging phone calls from score of invited guests overwhelmingly indicated that "rain or shine, we are coming". And they proved it.
United Nations had declared June 5, 2019 as the Environment Day and urged the citizens of the world to plant as many trees as they could around them. The call from the Counsel General of India (CGI), Chicago, came to the Gandhi Memorial Chicago, located in Skokie, to plan the celebrations.
The GMC determined that the surrounding of the statue of Mahatma Gandhi, in the Skokie Sculpture Park, would be an ideal place to celebrate this event.
However, this location had a score of challenges for the GMC volunteers due to the extremely wet weather. The entire area was soaked wet due to storms during the previous week.
The CGI office stepped forward and suggested to set up a tent and chairs for the comfort of guests. The CGI, Hon. Mr. Sudhakar Dalela, also offered to meet the cost of rental equipment.
Mr. Pramod Shah, Village Clerk of Skokie, guided us through the process of distributing the invitation cards in accordance with the protocol. He also put us in touch with Cathy of the Skokie Village Dept. of Forester.
As the event began, Hon. George Van Dusen, Mayor of Skokie, arrived right on time at Gandhi statue at 11.30 a.m. The CGI and the Consulate staff had already arrived. A large group of guests from Metropolitan Asian Family Services (MAFS), under the leadership of Mrs. Shanta Kumar also joined.
Amidst a gathering of score of guests, the Master of Ceremony, Shri Satish Chander, started the program with the singing of 'Raghu Pati Raghav Raja Ram'. He also guided the enthusiastic crowd to the whole-hearted loud slogan of 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai'.
This Mayor addressed the crowd followed by CGI who spoke about the significance of Environment Day.
From thereon, the Skokie Forester Cathy took control of the proceedings. She had pre- selected five spots in the ground around Gandhi statue to plant two shady and three flowering trees in the area.
Cathy and her team members were ready with their work gears to work in the mud and slush. Amidst the preparations done by Skokie Forestry Dept., the dignitaries proceeded to plant the trees under Cathy's guidelines
Meanwhile the members of MAFS served refreshments, tea and water bottles to the guests. They had brought the bags of great tasting refreshment for all the guest. They also generously provided a large kettle of hot, sweet tea for everyone.
Dr. C.M. Modi, MD, Chairperson (GMC) happily interacted with the guests and Asian Media USA team cover the ongoing event.