Community Profile

Town of Trenton

Trenton, ME

Fred Ehrlenbach

Chairman, Board of Selectmen

Pledge Summary

Trenton is a small town of approximately 1,500 people. It is located at the gateway between the nearest metropolitan area of Ellsworth and Acadia National Park on Mount Desert Island. In 2022 the town signed the Mayor's Monarch Pledge for the first time. Community volunteers planted two small demonstration pollinator gardens, one behind the town office and a second behind the Trenton Elementary School. The Select Board has pledged to help conserve the Monarch butterfly and to encourage its citizens to participate in community activities in relation to pollinator conservation.

Community Spotlight

2022 Mayors' Monarch Pledge Proclamation Day

Chip Roscom, chair of Trenton Parks & Rec, reads the proclamation

Milkweed Propagation Workshop Fall 2022

Maine Master Naturalist Cyrene Slegona explains how to propagate milkweed

Action Items Committed for 2025

Communications and Convening ▸

Launch or maintain a public communication effort to encourage residents to plant monarch gardens at their homes or in their neighborhoods. (If you have community members who speak a language other than English, we encourage you to also communicate in that language; Champion Pledges must communicate in that language.)
Engage with gardening leaders and partners (e.g., Master Naturalists, Master Gardeners, Nature Centers, Native Plant Society Chapters , other long-standing and influential community leaders) to support monarch butterfly conservation.

Program and Demonstration Gardens ▸

Host or support a native seed or plant sale, giveaway or swap.
Facilitate or support a milkweed seed collection and propagation effort.
Plant or maintain a monarch and pollinator-friendly demonstration garden at City Hall or another prominent or culturally significant community location.
Add or maintain native milkweed and nectar-producing plants in gardens in the community.
Launch, expand, or continue an invasive species removal program that will support the re-establishment of native habitat for monarch butterflies and other pollinators.
Host or support a monarch butterfly festival that is accessible to all residents in the community and promotes monarch and pollinator conservation, as well as cultural awareness and recognition.

Past Pledge Archive

Mayor Name	Program Year	Pledge Date	Achievement
Chairman, Board of Selectmen Fred Ehrlenbach	2025	3/19/2025		View Pledge
Chair, Board of Selectmen R. Frederick Ehrlenbach	2024	3/8/2024	Leadership Circle	View Pledge
Chairman, Board of Selectmen R. Frederick Ehrlenbach	2023	2/3/2023	Leadership Circle	View Pledge
Chairman, Board of Selectmen R. Frederick Ehrlenbach	2022	3/31/2022	Signatories	View Pledge

Pledge Status

Pledge Date

Program Year

Links and Uploads

Action Item Report