Twenty-five years of an environmental and community partnership will be celebrated with the planting of a symbolic tree on Wednesday, October 25th at 1 p.m.. in Atlantic City Park. The public is invited to the celebration. The Atlantic 25th Anniversary Planting recognizes the community’s 25 years of working with Alliant Energy and Trees Forever’s Branching Out partnership.

Dolly Bergmann, president of Atlantic Trees Forever, said in that time, 2,640 trees have been planted in Atlantic through the program, with 24 planted recently throughout the community as part of the celebration. The 25th tree in this recent group will be planted in City Park on October 25 to mark the 25-year partnership. Bergmann said also, “We’ve been all over town.” She said of the sites that have benefited from trees through the years, including parks, schools, the YMCA, courthouse, hospital and Chamber office. She said “People here understand the benefit of trees, including shade and clean air.”

According to Doug Kopp, President of Alliant Energy’s Iowa Utility  “When you plant a tree, you’re starting to leave behind a legacy. Fifteen years from now you can come back and see what you’ve done and it is impressive. These trees provide a benefit to the community in terms of energy efficiency and carbon reduction for years to come and we’re proud to be a part of it.” Shannon Ramsay, Trees Forever Founding President and CEO, says “Trees Forever is very excited to mark the 25th anniversary in Atlantic. Through our partnership with Alliant Energy and the help of volunteers, we’ve been providing a long-lasting benefit to the community.”