The Story of the Live Oak Trees

When Legacy Community Health purchased the land that would eventually become the home of the Montrose Clinic, three majestic, giant oak trees lived on the property. Arborists told us this trio of grand, old oaks had sprouted from the ground nearly a century ago, growing along with Houston’s rapid, city-wide expansion, population explosion and cultural upheavals. To destroy them while razing the old building to make way for the new was out of the question.

“To me they symbolized everything we stand for at Legacy. The trunks represent how strong our organization has been over the years and all that we’ve endured,” says Legacy CEO Katy Caldwell. “The branches are the different ways we’ve served the community, and the new growth shows what the future has to hold.”

The symbolic oak tree also “lives” on the fourth floor at Legacy Montrose, with a painting of its extensive branches decorating one of our meeting rooms. An artistic rendering was used for the cover of our 2012 Annual Report, and the branches are also featured in the masthead of our new LGBT monthly e-newsletter Preserving Our Legacy.

“The oak trees’ roots honor our deep history in Montrose,” Caldwell says. “We plan to be here another 90 years and more, as long as the community needs us.”