On Sunday, September 28, 2025, AYLUS Oakland Gardens held its 196th event, which took place from 9:15 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. During this event, AYLUS Oakland Gardens worked with the Tree Count Team at Kissena Park. This event was meant to log down all the trees in the park.
We were first introduced to Gemma, Tenzin, Sherlan, and David, who were members of the tree count team. First, Gemma told the members to split into teams of three or more. Then, each member was given a tote bag that had a measuring tape, a tree guild, and a hat. Additionally, each group was given an iPad, so each group could mark which tree they identified. That’s when Gemma and the other team member of the Tree Count showed AYLUS Oakland Gardens members how to use the tree guild to identify the trees and how to use the iPad to mark the identified tree. Lastly, each group was selected to work on a region in the park and try to identify all the trees that were in their selected region.
The Tree Count event happens every 10 years. These tree-counting events are held by the NYC Parks Department to assess the urban forest condition of New York City. These events help determine the health of the trees that are scattered in New York City. These events also show which parks need more trees or attention to their trees.
During the event, members of AYLUS Oakland Gardens worked together to figure out which tree on the guild they were looking at. Members had to communicate with each other to find out if anyone noticed anything off about the tree that others hadn’t noticed yet. This event helped people open up and share with others because this was an event where communication was used to figure out whether the trees were healthy or not. Also, during the event, members were able to ask the Tree Count Team for help whenever Oakland Gardens members felt stuck on identifying a tree. This helps build Oakland Gardens members’ confidence and helps them find the courage needed to ask people for help.
We want to thank members of the Trees Count of 2025 Team, which was Gemma, Tenzin, Sherlan, and David. Thank you for allowing us to join in on the Tree Count of 2025 and teaching us all the different ways to identify a tree. Lastly, we want to thank all the volunteers who went and joined in for the Tree Count of 2025 event.
Our Volunteers:
1. Jia Qi Liu (Angela): 2.5 hours
2. Alfred Liu : 2.5 hours
3. Vicki Lin : 2.5 hours
4. Sophia ShiHan You : 2.5 hours
5. Stephanie ShiRan You : 2.5 hours
6. Linan Cao : 2.5 hours
7. Terrence Cao : 2.5 hours
8. Nicky Wong : 2.5 hours
9. Benny Yeung : 2.5 hours
10. Ioknor Lin : 2.5 hours
11. Ioklee Lin : 2.5 hours
12. Victor Chen : 2.5 hours
13. Kaisa Wu : 2.5 hours
14. Sophia Lu : 2.5 hours
15. Ivan Cao : 2.5 hours
16. Justin Cheong : 2.5 hours
17. Patrick Yeung : 2.5 hours
18. Zhiheng Zhou : 2.5 hours
19. Alexander Lu : 2.5 hours
20. Fayee Chen : 2.5 hours
21. Tyrone Li : 2.5 hours
22. Yue Yu : 2.5 hours
23. Teng Yu : 2.5 hours
24. Aidan Zheng : 2.5 hours
25. Zihan Shi : 2.5 hours
26. Yujie Zhu : 2.5 hours
27. Elina Lee : 2.5 hours
28. Jasmine Qu : 2.5 hours
29. Joanna Qu : 2.5 hours
30. Matthew Lin : 2.5 hours
31. Autumn Li : 2.5 hours
32. Eason Lin : 2.5 hours
33. Anthony Lin : 2.5 hours
34. Bowen Chen : 2.5 hours
35. Yuyan Fan : 2.5 hours
36. Nerissa Xu : 2 hours
37. Paxton Xu : 2 hours
38. Zhuoning Li : 2 hours
Parent Adviser Team:
Fannie Li: 3 hours
Karen Liao: 3 hours
Faye Liu: 3 hours
Report Written by: Vicki Lin
Reviewed by: Jia Qi (Angela) Liu
