On Saturday, December 3, 2016, the Thai Community Development Center (Thai CDC) in partnership with, the Royal Thai Consulate General, the Thai Town Rotary Club and the Hollywood Beautification Team planted an additional nineteen trees to Thai Town bringing the total tree count to ninety. This was the third occasion for Thai CDC who has planted a total of forty-one trees dating back to 2000 when Thai CDC entered into a covenant agreement with the City to maintain the streetscape of Hollywood Boulevard between Western and Normandie Avenues.
The Golden Trumpet Tree, which is on the City of Los Angeles’ approved list of trees, was chosen due to the fact that the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej was well known for his talents in playing a wind instrument and the color yellow is associated with the Chakri Dynasty with which he belongs. Although this is the third time that Thai CDC has undertaken an effort to plant trees in Thai Town, it will be the first tree planting event for many Thai organizations across the United States as they will also be planting trees in honor of the King on Saturday. The King’s birthday is officially on Sunday but Saturday was chosen as the day to commemorate his birth and honor his passing in the United States so that it would coincide with events that occurred in Thailand on Sunday.
Although the trees are drought tolerant, they do require watering for three years until they are mature enough to survive on their own. The Hollywood Beautification Team assisted in the planting and is contracted to water the trees weekly for the next three years. Planning for this event started in January 2016 and its success hinged upon the generous donations of Thai individuals, businesses, and organizations. Donations totaled $15,148 with each tree requiring a donation of $780 to fund the watering for
three years. After three years, the tree’s roots will be big enough to survive on their own.
“The Thai community’s support for this project has been tremendous! The unfortunate passing of our beloved King has unified the Thai community in such a way that it has brought together individuals, organizations, and businesses to show their love for the King by sponsoring the Golden Trumpet Trees in his name,” said Chanchanit Martorell, Thai Community Development Center Executive Director. “We gave birth to Thai Town back in 1999 and we are continuing our efforts towards making Thai Town a cultural destination. This effort along with the creation of the Thai Town Marketplace (a business incubator at Hollywood and Western), the Thursday East Hollywood Certified Farmers’ Market (located at the Hollywood and Western Metro stop,) the Kinnara decorative street lamps and the Thai Town Gateway Apsonsi statues are all key components of our plan towards uplifting the community economically through a cultural tourism strategy.”
The donors had the honor of planting the trees they sponsored and had the assistance from the Hollywood Beautification Team who insured that the trees were planted properly. Everyone’s spirits were high as each individual felt the joy of doing their part to enhance and beautify Thai Town but the day did hold its own bittersweet moments as everyone reflected on a future without their beloved “father”.
Donors included:
Al-Fatiha Center, Inc.
Boon Investment LLC
Crestico Realty and Mortgage
E-san Association of Southern California Healthy Wealthy Happy Thai Club of USA Jitlada – The Original Southern Thai Cuisine Luv2Eat Thai Bistro
N.T.W. Import and Export
Nat Trading
Nuad Thai & Spa Association of America Pa Ord Noodle
PiyaPashree Silapee
Rotary Club of Thai Town
Royal Thai Consulate General
Siam Media Newspaper
Siam Sunset
SSS Group
St. Gabriel’s College Alumni, USA Supatra’s Thai Bistro
Thai Association of Southern California Thai Churches in Southern California Thai Health and Information Services Thai New Year (Songkran) Festival
Thai Paktai Association
Tham Nam Jai USA Foundation
The Law Office of Jeffrey C. Jackson
The Prince Royal’s College Alumni
The Thai Nurse Association of California
The Thai Women’s Council of Southern California Wat Thai of Los Angeles
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