On Wednesday, May 10, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz joined New York City Department of Parks and Recreation Commissioner Adrian Benepe, Brooklyn Parks Commissioner Julius Spiegel, and family members of the late Tom Stofka at the dedication of the Tom Stofka Garden at McCarren Park in Greenpoint. Tom Stofka began his career with the Parks Department as a park ranger more than 25 years ago and served as Brooklyn Director of Forestry for ten years. He passed away May 7, 2004. He was also instrumental in leading the fight to eradicate the Asian long-horn beetle infestation of trees in the Williamsburg-Greenpoint community.

“As Brooklyn’s Director of Forestry, Tom Stofka was a man who, as a character in a famous children’s book once said, ‘spoke for the trees,’” said Borough President Markowitz. “This garden is designed with him in mind, and this spring, as the trees and flowers begin to blossom and bloom around Brooklyn, we see the cycle of life completed, as the seeds of life and enjoyment that Tom planted with such care put a smile on the faces of so many Brooklynites.”