As the trees sprout new growth and yards start to look their best they will all year, the City of Turlock will once again celebrate its Go Green Week from March 17-22.
In the city’s 18 years of its Go Green program, it has planted 353 trees and approximately 22,205 pounds of waste have been diverted from landfills.
The city and its partners will promote a number of earth-friendly activities, including planting trees, recycling and using public transportation.
Turlock Transit and the Stanislaus Regional Transit Authority (StanRTA) will be providing free trips on public transit to all members of the public during Go Green Week as part of a joint, free fare promotion. The goal of the joint promotion is to improve air quality through the reduction of single-occupant vehicle trips, reduce congestion and promote increased use of transit throughout the year. Funding for this joint promotion is made available through transit grants, including funding from the Low Carbon Transit Operations Program (LCTOP).
Turlock Transit staff will also be engaging with local schools to help educate students on the benefits of public transit and familiarizing them with the buses, as those 18 and under ride free all year long.
“Our main effort is to educate students on saving our planet’s resources,” said Monica, with the City of Turlock’s Municipal Services Department, told the Turlock City Council on Tuesday.
The city will partner with 10 schools this year and activities will include tree planting, live animal shows, recycling contest for children and tours of wastewater treatment and recycling facilities. In addition, the city held its annual art contest for Go Green Week. Julien Elementary 6th grade student Katherine Knittel was the winner of the 2025 Go Green T-shirt design contest.
Preceding Go Green Week is the Turlock Unified School District’s annual Festival on the Green event.
The music departments from across the Turlock Unified School District will be welcoming those of all ages to the campus of Pitman High School on Saturday for the annual event. The festival serves as a showcase of the District’s music students, while celebrating character, music and the arts.
According to TUSD, 552 elementary students are participating in the orchestra, 606 in the band, and 395 in the choir. There will also be 660 secondary students participating. Festival on the Greens gets underway at 10 a.m.
The inaugural Festival on the Green was held in 2012 when students and teachers felt that their music programs needed more than just one or two concerts or events per school year to showcase their talents. Since then, the day-long event regularly draws hundreds of students, their families and community members.
More information on this year’s Festival on the Green can be found by calling TUSD Educational Services at (209) 667-0632 Ext. 2282.
