SSM Health celebrates Earth Day with tree plantings and more

“The earth is our environment to protect and the garden to tend to.” – Pope Francis

The above quote from Pope Francis is inscribed on a dedication plaque under a freshly planted tree at the entrance of SSM Health’s headquarters in St. Louis. Dedicated and blessed on Earth Day, this tree was just one of many planted throughout the health ministry in April.

At SSM Health, our Values of Stewardship and Community call us to be good stewards of our natural resources and minimize our environmental impact. This commitment is rooted in our heritage, as our founding sisters focus on compassionate care of creation by actively promoting renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, forest conservation and other initiatives to reverse global warming.

In honor of Earth Day this year, our health ministries focused their attention on planting trees, along with other sustainability efforts such as recycling, seed distributions, environmental clean-up events, and more. In Southern Illinois, a tree planting even accompanied the blessing of new solar panels during the solar eclipse!

For us, planting trees is nothing new. In fact, more than 13,000 trees have been planted with the help of SSM Health ministries and team members over the past five years.

Take a few minutes to see just a few of our efforts in honor of Earth Day around SSM Health.

Did you know that trees have a significant, positive impact on our health, environment, economy, and community?

• People with access to green spaces may reduce their levels of the stress hormone cortisol by up to 52%
• Even modest increases in urban tree canopy may reduce ozone levels by over 35% in metropolitan areas.
• Tall trees can reduce noise levels by 50%.
• According to the U.S. Forest Service, the value of air pollution removed by urban trees is estimated to be $3.8 billion.