Hattie Carthan

"The Tree Lady of Brooklyn" is an inspiration and example of community organizing and the power of block associations to really align neighbors towards a common good. In the 1960s, when blockbusting impacted her neighborhood, Hattie sent every neighbor on her block a letter, asking for their support to beautify the block, which barely had any trees. Seven members of the block showed up and became part of the T&T-Vernon Block Association.

Hattie's love of trees led her to Tree Corps, classes on tree planting for neighborhood children. In a bold move, she invited Mayor Lindsay to visit their block; the rest is history. Hattie's vision resulted in the landmarking of the magnolia tree that still stands on Lafayette Avenue. Furthermore, she expanded her love of trees across Bed-Stuy, becoming chairman of the Bedford Stuyvesant Beautification Committee. She didn't stop there; she worked with the City Planning Commission to save brownstones on Lafayette Avenue from being torn down and form what is today known as the Magnolia Tree Earth Center.

Today, MAGNOLIA TREE EARTH CENTER needS your help to restore and save Hattie's legacy.

Go to Tinyurl.com/ForHattie and share the link wiith your friends and community far and wide.

For more indepth about Hattie's vision

https://www.bklynlibrary.org/blog/2017/02/08/hattie-tree-lady-brooklyn

https://bkreader.com/2021/02/15/feb-15-brooklyn-black-history-maker-hattie-carthan/