A colloquial term often thrown around is “Small-Waukee.” It’s that feeling when you bump into a person you know at the grocery store, or travel well outside the city and inevitably meet someone with ties to Milwaukee. That phenomenon also has a macro version — call it “Big-Waukee” — when you look at the number of jobs, small businesses and other goings-on in the city.
We decided to combine the two views of Milwaukee for what we’re calling “4-1-4 Questions.” The setup is relatively simple: Find someone whose role in the city keeps its cogs turning and ask them four questions about their background, one question about music and four questions about “their” Milwaukee.
To kick off 4-1-4 Questions, I spoke with Letrica Morris, one of my mentors when I was an urban forestry intern over the summer and, currently, the city of Milwaukee’s only Black woman arborist.
The following interview has been edited for length and clarity.
4 questions about your background
What is your name and what do you do?
My name is Letrica Morris, and I’m an urban forestry specialist with the City of Milwaukee Forestry Department.
What was it like going through the DPW crew training?
First of all, I had no idea what forestry was. My alderman put flyers in the mailbox at the apartment complex I lived in, and all I knew was that it was a job. At the time, I wanted to know, “How could I get this good city job?” When he put the flyers in the mailbox, it was old school, so I had to go down to city hall to fill out the application.
Then I waited and waited, and my number came up. It wasn’t cut and dry, though. I had to do a physical agility exam almost like the police and fire departments do. I just had a baby, so I was small and agile, so I’m like, “I can do this.”
When I got there, I saw all these people standing around trees in a park, and I was like, “What the heck did I get myself into.” Then I saw people climbing up a ladder with a rope and saddle, reaching out and grabbing flags, and all I kept thinking was, “I’m in trouble.” All the crazy stuff they were doing, I had to do it too because I wanted this job. So that’s what I did — climbed the trees, rang a bell, hit a flag, all that good stuff … so here I am.
You can consider me what they call an O.G. We didn’t have what we do now, which is an apprenticeship. When I started, the training was about a year, which was all physical aspects of the job like climbing and chipping to prove you’ve got it. It was a rough and aggressive year. My saddle was just a leather belt, the kind you see in movies that momma and daddy whoop your butt with. It’s so ancient, but to me it made us harder and stronger. It just wasn’t as safe as it is now.
What is it like to be the city of Milwaukee’s only Black woman arborist?
In my career, I have only seen four Black women come through this program. Being the only one, I’m leading by example, keeping the legacy of the women before me alive and trying to keep that identity still there. I don’t want to lose it, which is why I like to volunteer and work with younger people so I can say, “Hey girl! You can do this too!”
What is the most rewarding part of your job?
I have to be honest: It’s the satisfaction of a job well done. I call it giving the tree a haircut, but professionally it’s known as pruning. When you see what you did to aesthetically make that tree thrive, it’s so cool. Also, when you get praised and thanked by others for what you did, it makes you feel good.
1 question about music
What album would you pick as the soundtrack to your life and why?
That’s such an open-ended question because I listen to so many genres of music, but any Whitney Houston album is the soundtrack to me. Why I say that is because she dealt with so many things in her life behind the scenes but still managed to persevere awesomely in every performance.
A reason why I picked Whitney is that I deal with the things in my life and never let it show in my work or personal life, so that’s why I gravitate toward her. I was heartbroken when we lost her, but at the same time I was glad we had some time to get to know her.
4 questions about your Milwaukee
What is the most underrated spot in Milwaukee?
I was born and raised here, but I don’t think Emperor of China on Brady Street gets their flowers. They’re super friendly, it's a beautiful atmosphere, and it’s so comfortable. It’s a secluded place on a busy street, and the hustle and bustle on Brady Street goes away. When you walk in, it feels like you’re alone with whoever you’re with or by yourself. More people should check it out — and, oh my god, the Mai Tai is to die for.
Where is the hardest tree you’ve had to climb?
I’ll never forget it. The city only has so many elm trees left because we lost a lot of them from Dutch Elm disease. At the time that I was climbing, they wanted everybody to climb at least one because they wanted us to have the experience.
Climbing this tree was like every spooky movie wrapped in one, I swear to god. It was humongous, intense, scary and so challenging that I literally cried. It was on Honey Creek Parkway right behind Wisconsin Lutheran High School. It’s gone, but the memory of it I will never forget. If you ever come across an elm tree, hug it, because we don’t have many left.
It’s your final meal. Which Milwaukee restaurant do you pick?
I’m not saying this because it’s Hispanic Heritage Month, but I am dead serious when I say Cielito Lindo on 2nd and National. The atmosphere, the people, the food, the fun — if it was my final meal, I would want to go there because I know I would feel good afterward.
Picture this: It's Friday after a long day of pruning. Where does the crew go for a post-work drink/hang?
We went to this place called Spitfire on State Street. It’s another place that you go — and not just because of the alcohol — where everyone makes you feel welcome.
Part-time writer and environmental studies student Dara Carneol dabbles in everything from radio to filmmaking to crocheting with plastic bags to wondering how she killed the tomato plants in her garden. She is a full-time enjoyer of puns, hypothetical questions and narrating the life of her dog, Chase.