One Bench One Tree started as a grassroots project dedicated to expressing gratitude to front-line workers and other healthcare staff during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. The objective was to add at least one bench and one tree to the landscape of hospitals across Canada to thank the workers who put their lives at risk to keep our communities safe during the pandemic.

In 2025, after four incredible years the One Bench One Tree project found a new future for One Bench One Tree with Canadian Trees for Life.

One Bench One Tree Projects

London Health Sciences Centre: University Campus - London, ON
Haldimand War Memorial Hospital - Dunnville, ON
The Willett Urgent Care Centre - Paris, ON
Brantford General Hospital - Brantford, ON
Seaforth Community Hospital - Seaforth, ON
Clinton Public Hospital - Clinton, ON
Groves Memorial Community Hospital - Fergus, ON
HPHA | St. Marys Memorial Hospital - St. Marys, ON (Sponsored by Gord Barnett)
HPHA | Stratford General Hospital - Stratford, ON
Chatham-Kent Health Alliance - Chatham, ON (Sponsored by Keegan Kares)
Bluewater Health - Sarnia, ON
Guelph General Hospital - Guelph, ON (Sponsored by Rotary Club Guelph South)
London Health Sciences Centre: Victoria Campus - London, ON
St Thomas Elgin General Hospital - St Thomas, ON
Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre - Thunder Bay, ON
Sunnybrook Hospital: St. John’s Rehab - Toronto, ON
Sunnybrook Hospital: Bayview Campus - Toronto, ON
St. Peter’s Hospital - Hamilton, ON
The Ottawa Hospital: General Campus - Ottawa, ON (Sponsored by Wild Ridge Landscapes; Vandenberg & Wildeboer Architects Inc.)
Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario - Ottawa, ON

FAQs

  • Some hospitals will have the capacity to have more than one bench/tree; however, some hospitals have very little green space. We wanted to have a design that all hospitals in Canada would be able to install.

  • We are planting native, deciduous trees at all our sites. Please refer to the design guidelines for recommended trees, such as sugar maple and oak tree species.

  • We are partnering with Maglin Site Furniture to provide benches to our site. A bench detail will be provided to hospitals.

  • Ideally, the bench and tree will be 2 meters apart to symbolize the recommended physical distance during the COVID-19 pandemic. Benches are 1.8 meters long.

  • Many hospitals have grounds crews and maintenance workers, whom we will work with during the installation process. If a hospital does need substantial support for an installation, we will be setting everything up

  • We appreciate anyone who is particularly interested in the project and would like an installation to be done at an earlier date.

    Please email our team at: info@treesforlife.ca

  • Once everything is planned out, it should take a day to install the pavers, bench, and tree. We will need some time to plan everything out, but our team will take care of this!

  • Typical tree maintenance will be needed to ensure the longevity of the tree. Benches may need replacing in 10 years.

One Bench One Tree Partners

Suppliers