About GroundCrew

One small act can keep growing.

GroundCrew is a tree-planting movement rooted in remembrance, care, restoration, and the belief that ordinary people can create something living that lasts far beyond a single day.

What began as something deeply personal became a wider mission to help more people plant for their own reasons and leave something useful growing behind.

Who We Are Join GroundCrew

Do your part. Plant a Tree. Remember someone. Restore a place. Create shade. Grow habitat. Leave something living for the future.

Who we are

A personal beginning. A public mission.

GroundCrew exists to make tree planting personal, practical, and meaningful—from one tree in one yard to larger community and partner programs.

We plant with purpose.

Every planting can begin with a reason: remembrance, shade, habitat, family, restoration, community, or simply the desire to put another healthy tree into the world.

We keep it practical.

Right species. Right place. Healthy roots. Water. Stewardship. The work after planting matters as much as planting day.

We help the idea travel.

Families, schools, neighborhoods, businesses, dealerships, and community partners can all help put more useful trees into the ground.

We stay focused on what lasts.

The goal is not a planting-day photograph. The goal is a tree that establishes, becomes useful, and remains part of the place for years to come.

Our story

It started as remembrance. It became a passion for life.

After Dawne passed, Joey was not looking for a mission. Planting became something physical to do with grief—something his hands could work on when words were not enough.

Then the trees themselves became the reason to keep going. Species, roots, soil, water, seasons, canopy, habitat, and the quiet resilience of living things became a genuine passion.

That passion grew beyond one family. GroundCrew became a way to invite other people to plant for their own reason and help more life take root in more places.

“I started digging because I needed a diversion. I kept digging because I found a passion.”

Read the Full Story Living Memorials

What we do

One mission. Different ways to put life into the ground.

GroundCrew connects personal planting, memorials, community work, storytelling, stewardship, and partner-supported programs around one simple idea: leave something living behind.

Plant

Plant a Tree

Start with a site, a reason, and a tree that fits. Plant independently or request support when available.

Start planting → Remember

Memorial Trees

Create a living place for memory that can continue changing through seasons and years.

Plant in their honor → Restore

Community Projects

Support schools, neighborhoods, shared spaces, habitat, shade, and practical local canopy work.

Explore projects → Multiply

Partners + Programs

Help businesses, dealerships, organizations, and sponsors turn support into visible planting and stewardship.

Partner with us →

What we believe

The future grows from what we choose to care for today.

GroundCrew began at human scale—one person, one shovel, one tree. We want the work to stay understandable and tangible even as the reach grows.

Care is a practice.

Planting is only the beginning. Trees need good placement, water, time, and people willing to keep showing up.

Impact should be tangible.

Real trees. Real ground. Clear stewardship. Stories tied to actions people can actually understand.

Place matters.

The right tree depends on climate, soil, space, utilities, water, and what can thrive there for the long term.

Small actions can have long lives.

A planting that takes an afternoon can begin decades of shade, habitat, memory, and community benefit.

Founder

Joey's story is where GroundCrew began. The mission belongs to everyone who joins it.

Joey started planting because he needed something physical to do with grief. He kept planting because trees became a genuine passion—something worth learning, protecting, and sharing.

GroundCrew carries that original idea forward while making room for every person's reason to plant.

Read Joey's Story Join GroundCrew

Joey Montes • Founder, GroundCrew

Explore GroundCrew.

Learn more about the mission, the work, and the ways people are helping it grow.

Stories

Whatever your reason, leave something growing.

Plant for someone you miss. Plant for people you love. Plant for your home, your street, your school, your community, or a future you may never personally see.

Plant a Tree Join GroundCrew

GroundCrew Foundation • PlantsATree.com