Farewell Paul Domaruk

On Wednesday, May 6, 2009 Paul Istvan Domaruk left this world after a long illness.  Pauly was a treasure and he is already missed in a way that it's hard to adequately describe.

Paul started work at TreeFolks after the unexpected death of our former Executive Director Mary McCarthy.  Mary's sudden, unexpected illness and rapid decline had left TreeFolks in a state of disarray that threatened our existence as an organization.  We had no money, sketchy prospects and a board and community in serious question of our continued viability.  Paul stepped in anyway but not out of need on his part.  He'd received a higher-paying, more secure job offer with the City of Austin.  But Paul had volunteered for TreeFolks and he was a casual friend and he felt that he could make a difference so he offered.

Those early times were very hard.  I couldn't begin to guess how many hours we worked to buoy the finances, continue the programs and reassure our constituents that things would be okay.  But days were long and grueling and often strung for weeks without days off.  Those sorts of situations can break different ways.  The pressure can easily drive people under and relationships apart but Paul and I forged a friendship that felt as natural as if it had formed under the best of circumstances.  Paul was Paul and circumstances were secondary.

That's not to say we always agreed, though.  At times we bickered like an old married couple but Paul was always  willing to admit when he was wrong and that made it completely easy and comfortable for me to do the same.  It was safe to disagree with him because you always knew, however strongly you felt in the moment, the love was waiting for you at the end.

Paul had a very strong sense of justice and fairness.  In our very public life we often run into situations that obviously don't serve the interests of everyone and everything equally.  Paul, to the very limited extent that he would become upset, would rail against those situations with strong but measured outrage. 

Pauly was diagnosed with Glioblastoma Multiforme, a disease that is almost universally terminal and which has no known cause, in December of 2006.  Only months before, he had married his beautiful, loving wife Lydia and purchased his first home.  He had worked doggedly to make TreeFolks an easier and more secure place to work.  By any reasonable measure he had laid the foundation for the beginning of a wonderful life and had almost immediately been told that he wouldn't be here to enjoy it for long.  An ordinary person might have revolted against the grievous injustice of the cards he'd been dealt.  But Paul, so willing to fight for equity for others, only fought his disease, never the universe that put that burden on him.  A couple of weeks ago he visited us for a few hours.  He'd lost the ability to use more than twelve or so words. The three that he held on to and used in perfect context (as he had a thousand times before) as I got my last Pauly-hug were "I love you".  We love you, too, Paul.



















Carbon Offsets Help Erase Your Pollution

The carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of our modern society are a major contributor to rapid climate change. When fossil fuels are burned, carbon that has been locked away for millions of years is released into the air, causing the Earth’s temperature to rise and significant climatic changes to take place. We are already seeing an increase in extreme weather events, and indicators of imminent large-scale climate change, with serious implications for the world as we know it.  It is essential that each of us reduce our CO2 emissions.  However, it is not possible to eliminate all CO2 emissions immediately, so in the interim we can help to reduce the impact of those emissions that are unavoidable by planting trees.

Because trees take in carbon dioxide, split it apart, "exhale" oxygen and hold carbon in their tissues and deposit it underground, they are an excellent way to reduce excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.  Urbans trees also shade homes and mitigate the heat island effect which causes city temperatures to be several degrees warmer than the surrounding countryside so they save the fossil fuels that are burned for eletricity while reducing power bills.  In that way they reduce carbon dioxide even more.  At the same time, urban trees increase property values, lower other pollutants like particulates, keep stormwater runoff cleaner and provide habitat for wildlife.

TreeFolks makes it easy for you to plant trees to erase your "carbon footprint." We grow our own native trees at our Austin nursery and, with your offset purchase, we’ll plant as many trees as you need to offset your carbon emissions through our established urban forestry programs. We have an easy online carbon calculator that tells you how many tons of carbon you are responsible for and gives you the opportunity to purchase "carbon offsets" in a secure on-line transaction.

Buying offsets from TreeFolks isn't exactly like buying trees.  It's buying one of the "products" of the trees.  It's sort of like buying fruit as opposed to buying a fruit tree except, in this case, you're buying all of the fruit that the tree will ever produce.  But that's not all.  By buying offsets from our non-profit organization your purchase is subsidized by thousands of hours of volunteer labor. Your purchase is also used to support our educational programs and can be used as a "match" for grant funds, allowing us to plant many more trees and to teach people to care for the trees we already have.  Now that's value!


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