President’s Message

“I am the Lorax I speak for the trees.” - Remember that odd mustachioed character from Dr. Suess’ The Lorax trying to protect the fictional truffula trees?  Who speaks for the beloved Live Oak Trees of Glynn County?

The answer is GIFT – Golden Isles Fund for Trees, a non-profit, all-volunteer organization founded in 2015 and determined to preserve and enhance the tree canopy in Glynn County through tree planting, education, and advocacy.

Live Oak Trees (scientific name Quercus Virginiana) grow along the coastal areas of the Southern United States from Texas to Virginia.  Visitors and residents alike are enthralled by the beauty of the moss-draped Live Oak Trees that arch over our roads and shade our homes and businesses.  The long, graceful branches of the Live Oak, sometimes reaching to the ground, help stabilize the trees and protect them from the damaging winds of tropical storms and hurricanes.

Our coastal tree canopy of Live Oaks, Eastern Red Cedar, and Southern Magnolia, along with Laurel Oaks, Water Oaks, and Pines, create a shady, cooling landscape.  Our tree canopy provides a habitat for a variety of songbirds, shorebirds, and birds of prey, as well as squirrels, raccoons, and other small mammals. Trees’ many benefits include stormwater management, erosion control, providing wildlife habitat, and improving water quality.  The most important benefit occurs during photosynthesis – when carbon dioxide is converted into oxygen.  Everyone breathes easier with trees in their neighborhood.

Miriam Lancaster