Based in Northern California and with a background as an experienced educational leader, Steve Betando held administrative responsibilities with the Morgan Hill Unified School District (MHUSD) for 10 years. With a passion for nature, Steve Betando gifted 400 Sequoia Coast Redwood Tree saplings to employees of MHUSD upon his retirement as Superintendent.
The event, held at the Paradise Valley Engineering Academy Auditorium, featured employees from every school and district facility, prominent community members, several police officers including the chief, the former mayor, and the city manager. In gifting the trees, Mr. Betando expressed hope for future generations, which span 9,000 Preschool through Adult students across MHUSD alone.
With each gifted Redwood, visitors received instructions on how to care and plant the tree. On the reverse side of the planting instructions, he included a metaphorical message of encouragement and well-wishes to each visitorfor a life of uniqueness, resilience, and potential, similar to the characteristics of a Coast Redwood.
Uniqueness: Coast Redwood needles are very soft while the and the Coast Redwood is the strongest and tallest of all trees. Cones are only about an inch long and carry 14-24 seeds – each seed about the size of a tomato seed. It would take well over 100,000 seeds to weigh a pound.
Resilience: The bark of mature Coast Redwood trees can grow to beyond a foot thick, creating a great protective shield from flames as it is exceedingly resistant to fire and heat and smoke. Moreover, when the trees burn, the cells sprout new growth buds from trunk and branches. After a traumatic fire, the roots extend out and then sprout new trees. Redwoods are naturally resistant to insects, fungi, and fire because they are high in tannin. They do not produce resin or pitch.
Potential: The Coast Redwood grows from the tiny seed to a 100-foot-tall giant within 50 years. Each tree has tremendous lifelong potential. The tallest living tree is now 380 feet, higher than a 35-floor skyscraper. A Coast Redwood is the widest tree at 27 feet across. As a living, oxygen generating organism, a single Coast Redwood is impressive in appearance and amount of respiration produced per year. A single mature Coast Redwood can produce over 1000 lbs of oxygen per year, much more than a single human needs during the same time period. Unfortunately, current numbers reveal that only 5 percent of the original old growth coast redwood forest remain on earth. The Redwood's respiration can also clean more carbon from the air and store it longer than any other tree which counters climate change.
Steve Betando commented about the gift's link to environmental concerns, noting that “we’re guests on this planet and need to be conscientious about our everyday actions and their impact," while he encouraged guests to choose the ideal spots to plant the trees they took with them.
While thanking the employees for all the tremendous challenges and successes across MHUSD, he recounted everyone's effort in the creation of “focus academies” in five elementary schools. By creating a themed and energetic learning environment, his team has attracted teachers whose thought processes are aligned with instructional design and strategies. He noted employee past and potential success in the new educational paradigm while encouraging continued accomplishment through their strength and adaptability, which, metaphorically, are also "characteristic of Coast Redwoods.
