St. Helena Second Graders Plant a Dogwood for Arbor Day It was 110 years ago that President Theodore Roosevelt first asked school children to plant trees on Arbor Day. This year, on Arbor Day, April 28, the second graders of St. Helena School planted their very own First Communion Dogwood Tree in the St. Helena playground. Legend says that Jesus was crucified on a dogwood tree and that the petals of the tree’s flower resemble the shape of the cross with the crown of thorns inside. The Spanish village of Mondoñedo held the first documented arbor day plantation festival in the world, which was organized by its mayor in 1594. The place was called Alameda de los Remedios and to this day lime and horse-chestnut trees are planted every year. A humble granite marker and a bronze plate recall the event. Additionally, the small Spanish village of Villanueva de la Sierra held the first modern Arbor Day planting, an initiative launched in 1805 by the local priest, Fr. Ramon Vacas Roxo, with the enthusiastic support of the entire population. The first American Arbor Day celebration took place in Nebraska City, Nebraska on April 10, 1872, with the planting of one million trees. Finally, on April 15, 1907, President Theodore Roosevelt issued his Arbor Day Proclamation to School Children of the United States asking them to plant trees on Arbor Day. The Dogwood Tree that was planted by the St. Helena second graders on Arbor Day 2017 in their playground area was planted to commemorate their First Holy Communion, which they will receive on Saturday, May 6 at 10AM in the church.