Alejandra Yañez 
Brownsville City Commissioner for District 3 Roy De los Santos (left) and Commissioner for District 4 Pedro Cardenas listen to a presentation during last Tuesday’s meeting in the Brownsville Public Library Main Branch meeting room. The Brownsville Beautification Committee presented a plan to plant trees at four parks in the city as a living memorial in honor of those who lost their lives due to COVID-19. Luis Martinez Santillano/The Rider Photo
In honor of those who have died due to COVID-19, the Brownsville Beautification Committee plans to plant trees in the city to remember the significance of the pandemic on the community.
During the Brownsville City Commission meeting last Tuesday, the BBC presented its project.
Oscar Zertuche, president of the BBC, presented the plan and said the committee is working with other organizations in the community to sponsor the living memorial.
“We call it a living memorial because we would be planting the trees in honor of those who have passed due to COVID,” Zertuche said. “And the idea is to have a tree cove in a designated park in each district so that people can go there and meditate and honor their loved ones.”
Depending on funding, the committee will decide how many trees will be planted per individual.
Commissioner At-Large “B” Rose Gowen plans to oversee the project for the commission and said, “Folks can go and sit in the shade and remember their parents or brother or sister as a living legacy.”
In the next couple of weeks, the committee and commission will decide on locations.
The price for trees are as follows:
-Retama $2,500
-Anacua $5,000
-Ebony $7,500
-Montezuma Cypress $10,000.
Isabelle Mascorro 
Daniel Aguilar 
Sofia Cantú Sauceda 
Mykel Del Angel 