Catholic groups plant 500 trees at Mount Apo

Members of three Catholic parishes in Digos diocese in Mindanao planted some 500 trees on the slopes of Mount Apo in Mindanao, one of the world's biggest volcanoes. The 500 trees are part of the 5,000 trees that they intend to plant at Mt. Apo, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) said. "The tree planting was also a follow-through of the Tree-Growing Program that began last February 9. The February event saw the simultaneous planting of 5,000 tree seedlings by the diocese’s 20 parishes," the CBCP said on its website. Digos Bishop Guillermo Afable led the tree-planting activity on July 27, the CBCP said. Social Action Center director Fr. Allan Joie Nuñez led the prayers before the start of the tree-planting while lay leader Zacarias Aweng talked on the importance of the tree-planting. "Several religious women, church workers and youth leaders joined the activity," the CBCP said. Meanwhile, the Basic Ecclesial Communities in each parish will work closely with the Program Documentation and Monitoring section of the Diocesan Social Action Center for the success of the program. - CBCP