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Bruene honored by Urban Tree  Council

Cheryl Bruene

The Iowa Urban Tree Council announced Cheryl Bruene as an Outstanding Professional in Urban Forestry. The award was presented virtually as part of the 30th Annual Urban Forestry Awards Ceremony held on April 8.

Bruene is the executive director for Tama County Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. She is responsible for implementing a variety of programs with Extension based, educational related materials for all ages.

Bruene had a vision to help county residents after the derecho last summer. She applied for free tree seedlings through an Iowa DNR grant and was awarded seedlings for 11 communities. The Tama County Master Gardener group assisted with education and distribution, including an information sheet on planting and a Natural Resource Stewardship hand-out about the species. The fall of 2020, Bruene contacted towns to set up sites, times, and provided a promotional flier for the 400 trees were available in five different locations. This coming May, locations in eight communities are being set up to distribute an additional 725 seedlings.

“This is an outstanding example of an Iowa professional, enhancing our forest resources through tree planting. Her dedication will benefit the communities in Tama County for future generations,” Iowa DNR Urban Forestry Coordinator Emma Hanigan said.