By Naomi Kim-Yu
When South Side Farms was in need of trees, manager Jake Smith knew he could turn to Forest ReLeaf. The fact that Forest ReLeaf could deliver trees down to Cape Girardeau, where the farm is located, was a huge plus, saving the team a trip to the nursery in St. Louis County’s Creve Coeur Park. While South Side Farms largely focuses on improving local food security, the planting of twenty redbuds in spring 2026 gave this urban farm an opportunity to also improve on-site beauty and biodiversity for the community to enjoy.
“Redbuds were always my dream,” Smith explains. As a hardy species, redbuds are capable of flourishing in tougher conditions. “Our site isn’t conducive to many plants because there isn’t much top soil.”
As they grow and bloom, the redbuds will help the Cape Girardeau community flourish, too, for years to come. But their benefits aren’t just reserved for the future. Already, the trees have provided local high school students a chance to connect with the environment and to learn new skills: a group of students from the Big Brothers Big Sisters Club volunteered to help with the tree planting.
“I had the privilege of explaining to them why planting a tree in a public space is such a great thing,” Smith says. The students had never participated in a tree planting before, so Smith had the opportunity to share why the work is so valuable. “That was special for me.”
Today, one of those high schoolers—a stand-out worker on the day of the planting—has since become an employee at South Side Farms, and Smith is dreaming of long-term projects so that the redbuds can continue to benefit the community. Because the trees were planted on a ridge overlooking a field, he plans to install a set of benches for community members to sit and enjoy the view. And, as both the trees and the high school volunteers grow up, Smith hopes that the students will have the chance “to walk or drive by for many years to come and be proud of their contribution to the farm.”
“I want more people to utilize Forest ReLeaf,” Smith says as he reflects on these benefits both present and future, “especially down here in Southeast Missouri.”
This project was made possible by Forest ReLeaf’s CommuniTree program!
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I am Elijah Belz, the Field Operations Coordinator for Forest ReLeaf. I am a certified arborist and the primary person in the field for Forest ReLeaf, maintaining roughly 1000 trees planted in the St. Louis City, and maintaining our equipment our equipment used to maintain our trees! This job is a catch-all position that carries different responsibilities during the different seasons. Fall and spring are our planting, tree delivery, and inventory season; winter is our pruning, mulching, and planning season; summer is our watering season where we lead a crew of interns getting into the green industry.
My background is bicycle repair! I was in that industry for almost a decade, including running a bicycle repair shop, before taking a job with a tree planting organization in Atlanta. From there I moved to an edible landscape company. I became certified as an arborist while working at Forest ReLeaf this February! Trees rock, bikes are cool too.
De’Nonna Jones graduated from Knox College in 2023 with a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies, driven by a commitment to environmental justice and community-based conservation. Since then, she has gained hands-on experience working across a range of green spaces throughout the St. Louis region, focusing on the care, restoration, and accessibility of urban natural areas. She began her journey at Tower Grove Park, where she developed a deep appreciation for public green spaces as vital community resources, before moving into a stewardship role with the Missouri Botanical Garden in partnership with Great Rivers Greenway. She now serves as the Stewardship Crew Coordinator at Forest ReLeaf. De’Nonna is passionate about creating inclusive pathways into environmental work and empowering tree lovers and emerging conservationists to see themselves as stewards of their communities. Through her work, she strives to strengthen connections between people, trees, and places in urban environments.
After 17 years in the non-profit and public sector, Jess remains committed to mission-driven work that tackles the challenges facing our communities. Their career began with a year of service as an Americorps St. Louis Emergency Response team member, responding to natural disasters and performing conservation projects. That foundation of service led to roles supporting the arts, affordable housing, mental health, and grassroots housing advocacy in St. Louis. During this journey Jess has worked to center the value “nothing about us, without us.” They do their best to ensure that the voices of people who have been marginalized guide the strategy and execution of work that honors their lived experiences. When they aren’t working, Jess is out paddling, hiking, working in their garden, or building something.
