1st Olympia Tree Hugging Competition

SUN, SEPT 29, 2024 1-3 PM
NEW LOCATION: HERITAGE PARK (follow the signs to trees on the lake by entrance on 7th)
This FREE community event is modeled after similar international events in Finland and Scotland.The Tree Hugging Competition comprises 3 juried events for kids and adults:

1. Speed: hugging as many trees, for at least five seconds each, within 30 seconds.
2. Freestyle: the most creative hug of a tree, however he/she/them chooses to express appreciation (other international competitions include dancing, serenading, reading poetry, etc.), lasting up to 30 seconds.
3. Dedication/Reverence: the hug showing intention, love and respect to one tree for up to 30 seconds.

The competition concludes with awards loving delivered by our judges and then both participants and spectators are all invited to join in a community hug. We’ll create a hand-in-hand hug around a grove of trees to celebrate our gratitude to the Squaxin and all our neighbors today who continue to steward these trees for us to enjoy.

Excited about participating in the 1st Olympia Tree Hugging Competition? Please register early. Once we reach 20 individual participants, any additional participants may be asked to form teams. We will also start a wait list to try to accommodate everyone. Please forward this registration form to tree lovers – both young and old: https://tinyurl.com/treehuggingcompetition Please carpool and plan ahead since parking will be very limited that afternoon since the 5K ends at noon.