HIGH POINT, N.C., April 18, 2024 – The High Point University family gathered with local community members today to reflect on nature’s resilience during HPU’s annual Arbor Day Celebration, which came as the university celebrates its 100th anniversary this year.
HPU First Lady Mariana Qubein, who has spearheaded the growth of HPU’s Botanical Gardens and Arboretum, joined several other speakers at the Cottrell Amphitheater to celebrate the resilience of trees, plants and the university.
“We have transformed this campus and become nationally known for our latest few years of growth. This is resilience,” she said. “We have rooted our foundations in the past, just like a tree starts its roots and gets stronger with time. With lots of caring and nourishment, protection and constant improvement, our trees continue to grow to the maximum level.”
Like nature, HPU was resilient as it faced challenges through the years of war, the Great Depression and the coronavirus pandemic. Qubein noted nature goes through storms, hurricanes and droughts. Palms trees that sway in strong winds become stronger by growing roots that are more grounded, Qubein said.
Emma Martone, curator of the Mariana H. Qubein Arboretum and Botanical Gardens, spoke about how the pink flowering dogwood in her parents’ yard was the first tree to inspire her career. The tree species was later threatened by a fungal disease that spread through the late 1970s.
“For a species to get out of a mess like this, you really need two things: natural adaptation and human intervention,” Martone said. “The big takeaway today as we consider resilience is that you can’t really have resilience without hope. I don’t think we would have found ourselves here today without vision, without dreams, without inspiration for the future.”
Martone explained how the first rose garden Qubein planted on campus died because of contamination from kerosene tanks. She didn’t stop there but went on to create more and bigger gardens that continue to thrive.
The Mariana H. Qubein Arboretum and Botanical Gardens at HPU feature more than 30 gardens with more than 3,700 different plants and 700 varieties of trees. HPU’s gardens are featured in a new episode of PBS North Carolina’s “NC Weekend.” Attendees at the Arbor Day Celebration were encouraged to take a flowering dogwood sapling home with them.
HPU also received the Tree Campus Higher Education award for the 15th consecutive year. Formerly known as Tree Campus USA, Tree Campus Higher Education is an Arbor Day Foundation program that honors universities, colleges and their leaders for promoting healthy trees and engaging students and staff in the spirit of conservation.
“Nature grows in spite of rain, wind, cold or heat,” said Qubein. “Plants have resilience, and so do we as human beings.”
HPU’s Arbor Day Celebration was presented by Davey Tree. Price Landscaping and Pennybyrn were also sponsors.