When Kate Nare began working for Plant With Purpose, a San Diego-based organization that helps rural poor by planting trees to restore depleted land, she knew she had a heart for the poor. But when the Bird Rock resident got a chance to actually visit the areas in the Dominican Republic and Haiti where the organization’s efforts have come to fruition, she said it was life-changing. “The farmers got to show me what they had done, and they were so proud,” said Nare, a University of California, San Diego alum. The mission, she said, is to end a vicious cycle that begins when the poor chop down trees to use for charcoal, depleting the land to the point that it doesn’t sustain growth — forcing people into inner-city slums. Nare, the group’s marketing coordinator, is planning the organization’s biggest fundraiser of the year, the eighth annual “Planting Hope Gala,” which is coming to La Jolla’s Marriott Grand Ball Room this Saturday at 6 p.m. The organization hopes for a great turnout, as they’ve employed 4,000 people to plant more than 200,000 trees in Haiti following the recent deadly earthquake, Nare said. The group has also built 354 miles of soil erosion barriers in the country, which protect against natural disasters like hurricanes and landslides. Plant With Purpose was founded in 1984 by Tom Woodard, who at that time was a member of La Jolla’s Mt. Soledad Presbyterian Church. He was inspired to start the organization when he volunteered for a Christian relief agency in the Dominican Republic. He noticed there was a connection between poverty and the environment. Understanding that most of the world’s poor are dependent on the land for survival, he wanted to provide a long-term solution to poverty, taking into account that deforestation and loss in soil fertility affect income potential. At the Oct. 9 event, there will be a Haiti auction, along with a video chronicling the work Plant with Purpose has been doing there. Tickets are $110 per person, and can be reserved by e-mailing [email protected] or calling (858) 274-3718.
