Tim and Dalene Chick pose in their Lake Placid home in 2017 before moving to Michigan (News photo by Antonio Olivero)

LAKE PLACID — When former Lake Placid/North Elba Tree Board co-chairman Tim Chick returned to this village last week from his home in Michigan, he was admiring the new trees planted along Main Street during the reconstruction project, especially the row of trees in front of the Bass Factory Outlet.

Chick was the guest of honor during Lake Placid’s annual Arbor Day celebration on Thursday, May 25 at Teddy Bear Park on Hillcrest Avenue. The Tree Board planted a northern red oak in the memory of his wife, Dalene, who died in July 2021 at the age of 88.

Tim told the News that he chose the northern red oak because it used to be the predominent plant here.

“I couldn’t think of any better thing to do than plant a tree in her memory here in Lake Placid,” Tim said in his speech, “and I hope I get through this without crying.”

The Chicks lived in Lake Placid for 18 years, moving here in 1999.

As part of this year’s Arbor Day celebration, the Lake Placid/North Elba Tree board planted this northern red oak at Teddy Bear Park to the memory of Dalene Chick, the wife of former Tree Board co-chair Tim Chick who died in 2021. (News photo — Andy Flynn)

“Immediately, Ruth Hart, who was the chairperson for the Appearance Committee, grabbed me and Bob Hanna and said, ‘Would you guys start a tree board?’ So we decided we would go ahead and do it,” Tim said.

Bob and Tim were the face of the Tree Board until the Chicks moved to Michigan in 2017.

“But the person who didn’t get a lot of face time was my wife, and I’m sure Bob’s wife was the same way,” Tim said. “The number of meals she had to make at crazy hours to accommodate our work and our meeting schedule was just tremendous. And I had the pleasure of being with her for 40 years.”

The thing Dalene loved more than trees was little children.

“Hence planting the tree by the park playground,” Tim said. “We were told that parents sitting on the bench by the playground needed some shade from the afternoon westerly sun, so we decided to plant the tree 25 feet away from that bench to eventually supply some shade … and I hope being that close to little children will make her happy.”

Lake Placid/North Elba Tree Board Chair Jamie Rogers makes an introduction at the annual Arbor Day celebration Thursday, May 25 at Teddy Bear Park. (News photo — Andy Flynn)

Tim still serves on the Tree Board, providing technical assistance, along with chairman Jamie Rogers, Judy Shea, Denise Bujold, Butch Martin, Kimball Daby, Ray Curran, Sue Cameron and Stephanie Pianki.

While introducing Tim to the crowd at Teddy Bear Park, Mayor Art Devlin said he was “way out ahead” of local leaders, when it came to trees.

“When Dutch elm disease came, he was very instrumental in getting the diseased trees out of Lake Placid and North Elba,” Devlin said. “Not only did he take care of that, but he realized that the other trees were going to go, even the healthy ones, and he started planting trees to replace those when they did go.”

Devlin wasn’t sure what to make of Tim Chick when they first met.

“I thought he was a little over the top,” Devlin said. “He treats every tree like a family member. And even if it’s diseased and he can get five or 10 more years out of it, that’s what he did. … As you know, our environment right now can use every tree it has. So for that, thank you very much, Tim.”

Val Rogers sings the national anthem Thursday, May 25 during the Lake Placid/North Elba Tree Board’s Arbor Day celebration at Teddy Bear Park. (News photo — Andy Flynn)

After Barbara Rand Ryan read her Arbor Day poem — “Believe” — Adam Wild, director of Cornell University’s Uihlein Maple Research Forest, spoke about the environmental benefits of trees. He ended with a popular saying: When is the best time to plant a tree? Thirty years ago.

“We can’t go back 30 years to plant a tree,” Wild said, “so I say the best really is actually today to go out and plant a tree because if you want old trees, you still have to have young trees for the future. Trees don’t live forever, just like humans. There’s a life cycle, so we always need to be planting new trees.”

After the speeches, Denise Bujold read the names of the elementary school students who won the annual Arbor Day poster contest. Entries came from the Lake Placid Elementary School and St. Agnes School.

“We had so many beautiful posters this year and we had several that were really outstanding,” she said.

The mayor handed out prizes to the winners:

Adam Wild, director of the Uihlein Maple Research Forest, gives a speech Thursday, May 25 during the Lake Placid/North Elba Tree Board’s Arbor Day celebration at Teddy Bear Park. (News photo — Andy Flynn)

– Grade1: Madeline Frazer and Craig Jopling, both from LPES

– Grade 2: Peter Farrell and Maya Stoltz, both from St. Agnes School

– Grade 3: Samantha Dashler, Kiera Felix and Taika Mzese, all from LPES

– Grade 4: No entries

– Grade 5: Conner Lavigne, Norah Francis and Mia Mezetti, and Else Winch and Leah Morch, all from LPES

Barbara Rand Ryan reads an Arbor Day poem Thursday, May 25 during the Lake Placid/North Elba Tree Board’s Arbor Day celebration at Teddy Bear Park. Mayor Art Devlin looks on. (News photo — Andy Flynn)

Lake Placid celebrates Arbor Day every spring with a planting and a poster contest, but not necessarily on the national holiday. Arbor Day was actually on Friday, April 28.

Tim Chick, center, catches up with some of his friends on Thursday, May 25 at Teddy Bear Park during the Lake Placid/North Elba Tree Board’s Arbor Day celebration. Sitting toward him, from left are Jini and Al Hood, and Lethe and Frank Lescinsky. (News photo — Andy Flynn)

Lake Placid Mayor Art Devlin hands Lake Placid Elementary School third grader Samantha Dashler a prize for a winning entry in the Lake Placid/North Elba Tree Board’s annual Arbor Day poster contest on Thursday, May 25 at Teddy Bear Park. (News photo — Andy Flynn)

Some of the Arbor Day poster winners were, from left, Norah Francis, Mia Mezetti, Leah Morch, Else Winch, Madeline Frazer, Samantha Dashler, Kiera Felix, Craig Jopling and Peter Farrell. Missing from this May 25 photo at Teddy Bear Park were poster winners Maya Stoltz, Taika Mzese and Conner Lavigne. (News photo — Andy Flynn)

Arbor Day poster on display at Teddy Bear Park on Thursday, May 25 (News photo — Andy Flynn)

Arbor Day posters on display at Teddy Bear Park on Thursday, May 25 (News photo — Andy Flynn)

Lake Placid/North Elba Tree Board Chair Jamie Rogers shows children how to plant a tree at the annual Arbor Day celebration Thursday, May 25 at Teddy Bear Park. (News photo — Andy Flynn)