STRUTHERS — Many people likely will see two trees recently planted at Struthers Middle School as aesthetically pleasing, but you also could say they represent a well-rooted relationship the city’s stakeholders have with one another.

“We appreciate the tremendous cooperation with our community, our mayor, our city hall and our elected officials,” Struthers Superintendent Peter Pirone Jr. said.

Pirone was referring to two pink flair cherry blossom trees that were dedicated during an Arbor Day event Friday morning at the school, 800 Fifth St., as part of ongoing efforts to make the city more eco-friendly and increase its green footprint.

Arbor Day was Friday in Ohio, although many states observe it on different dates based on best tree planting times.

The two trees, which were part of a collaboration between the school district and city officials, also were dedicated to the Struthers High School Class of 2020 and 2021, the superintendent added.

In addition, Struthers recently was accepted as a national Tree City USA location.

Tree City USA, established in 1976, is an Arbor Day Foundation program and movement that provides the structure for communities nationwide to expand and manage their public trees. More than 3,400 communities across the U.S. have committed to becoming Tree City USA locations, according to the foundation’s website.

Struthers received the designation after having met four core standards of forestry management: maintaining a tree board or department, having a community tree ordinance, spending at least $2 per capita on urban forestry and celebrating Arbor Day, Mayor Catherine Cercone Miller noted.

“This is a big step toward the future for us,” she said, adding that Friday’s ceremony was the first part of an effort to plant trees throughout the city.

The two trees at the middle school will be similar in several respects to the estimated 3,800 that line the National Mall in Washington, D.C., during the annual Cherry Blossom Festival that draws thousands every March and April, said Bob Clyde, a co-chairman with the Struthers Tree Board.

The cherry trees at the middle school also are the type that “grows in a vase shape instead of spreading out. They’re a very popular tree and a good growing tree,” Clyde said, noting that they can reach between 15 and 20 feet with a 15-foot span.

They also replaced four large trees that were nearby, but removed because they were in poor condition and often dropped branches on the street, creating a traffic hazard, he explained.

The idea to plant that variety of cherry trees at the school also was to replicate the beauty created by 20 such trees on a stretch of Overlook Boulevard in the city, Clyde continued.

“We want to make this our official city tree,” he added.