T-R PHOTO BY ROBERT MAHARRY From left to right, iJAG Educational Specialist Mary McCann-Fuchsen and MHS students Fabian Segovia, Joseph Burgos and Lewis Reyes work together to plant a tree on the high school property Monday afternoon. Trees Forever, Green Iowa, the Knight Foundation and the MCSD are teaming up to plant 114 trees across several district properties throughout the week.

It’s no secret that Marshalltown has lost thousands of trees over the last four years due to the 2018 tornado and especially the 2020 derecho. Restoring the city to its greener and leafier former glory won’t happen overnight, but an initiative that started on Monday and is set to continue throughout the week should help to put a major dent in the problem across several of the Marshalltown Community School District’s buildings and facilities.

Representatives from Trees Forever, Green Iowa and the Knight Foundation teamed up with MHS students on Monday afternoon to plant the first of 114 trees planned for the week. The focus on Monday was the west lawn of the high school, but they will also be planting at the baseball diamonds and several of the district’s other buildings before they are finished.

Kiley Miller, the CEO of Trees Forever, spoke to those in attendance on Monday and offered a bit of background on the Planting Hope program. He also commented on the resiliency he has witnessed in Marshalltown through the adversity of two devastating storms.

“There’s this really cool quote from a writer who said ‘On the other side of a storm is the strength that comes from having navigated it,’ and I can’t think of a better model than Marshalltown,” he said. “It seems like you’ve had a lot of struggles, but when I come back here, what I’m struck by is not the damage that was done, but by the recovery that is already on your way. This town comes together to plant for a better future.”

ShaRee Schnitker of the Knight Foundation explained her organization’s mission and how the project tied into it, and MCSD Buildings and Grounds Director Todd Goulding discussed how the tornado, derecho and the emerald ash borer have all affected the tree portfolio at the district’s facilities.

Erin Carpenter of Green Iowa also thanked everyone involved in the re-treeing effort and touted the benefits of trees both in terms of general shade and comfort and keeping energy costs under control.

“If we can replant our tree canopy, it is one of the most cost efficient ways of improving a community and helping the people who live here, so thank you all for coming out here and getting ready to sweat a little bit,” she said.

Kristin Titus, a parks supervisor and arborist with the Marshalltown Parks and Recreation Department, called the initiative a great opportunity to “diversify our canopy” within the city.

“We don’t plant trees for us to really appreciate so much, but it’s for our children that we plant our trees. They’re the ones that are really going to enjoy them. The kids grow as the trees grow,” Titus said.

After each speaker had said a few words, a brief demonstration was offered before students got to work putting the first batch in the ground. First, they removed them from their wrappings, trimmed up the roots and then dropped them in their designated holes. All that’s left to do now is water them and watch them grow.

Trees will also be planted Tuesday morning at the Marshalltown Learning Academy (MLA), Tuesday afternoon at Rogers Elementary with MLA students helping and the high school ball diamond with volunteers from Emerson-Fisher, Wednesday at Hoglan Elementary, and Thursday and Friday at Miller Middle School.

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Contact Robert Maharry at 641-753-6611 ext. 255 or

rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.