Our Beech Tree Logo

The beech tree, chosen as a new logo to represent the nursery school in 2012, is significant on many levels. The church, which has been in the heart of Lawrenceville for over 300 years, had lost an ancient American beech tree in a storm in October 2009. The tree was over 200 years old, and despite efforts from the church and community to save it, the tree was not repairable.

In early 2012 folks began to imagine a new tree in the north graveyard near the spot where the old beech stood. Through a combined effort of congregation members and Main Street volunteers, a plan took “root.” Church members Kris Deni and Rich Levandowski offered to donate a new tree that would be a memorial to Kris’s daughter, Leah, who died in December 2004.

According to Kris, when Leah was a child, she was always climbing one tree or another and, in her 20’s, became an ardent defender of the environment. This tree would be a wonderful tribute to her. So Kris, with help from others, chose a new tree—a copper beech—to take the place of the fallen tree. It was planted on April 29th during a commemoration service, and the nursery school children sang in Leah’s honor.

Leah attended the nursery school, then called Lawrenceville Presbyterian Co-operative Nursery School--renamed Lawrenceville Presbyterian Preschool in 2013-- and her connection with nature, the church, the community and our school has created a beautiful backdrop for our beech tree logo.