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​How does a person fall so deeply in love with trees?

Debbie Jones’ parents were a great influence on her love for trees. As a child, her parents took her to Rocky Mountain National Park and other areas where they would go on hikes among the trees and learn about nature from talks given by forest rangers.  She was mesmerized by the beauty of trees from then on. Even at an early age, the trees at her family home were an integral part of their lives. Her parents planted seven “dwarf” fruit trees in the back yard, 2cherry, plum, 2apple, and 2peach trees that provided for 200 jars of canned peaches and more.

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Family, teaching, trees and jogging have been some of Debbie’s life passions and she has found ways to combine them. Debbie Jones has her B.S in Education and taught school for five years before starting her family. After teaching, her love for trees has kept her going as a long-time volunteer for trees and nature.

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Debbie Jones got involved as a volunteer with the Hazel Crest Beautification Commission. She mentioned how much she learned from IDNR personnel who taught them how to do a tree inventory and qualify as a Tree City U.S.A.

When the village received a grant in 1987 for Open Lands, she contributed her work and work ethics with passion. She learned from IDNR about removing buckthorn, diseased elms, and diversifying species. Her strong sense of duty helped make the grant a success. The beautiful transformed OpenLands that we can see today is in part a product of her leadership, volunteering, and hard work. Luckily, she also encouraged Karl Persons, the main volunteer, to help there.

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Debbie thought the community of Hazel Crest had a responsibility to develop the special asset of the Open Lands for all to use. People from the Sherriff’s Department helped there at times and she encouraged them to take pride in their work and tell their children and grandchildren about the beauty of the Open Lands that blossomed in part from their effort. People walk in there and enjoy trees. Debbie said she always felt that there is an emotional feeling that occurs while you are with trees. “Feeling good inside because of trees made me always feel physically better as an effect,” shared Jones.

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Debbie loves to get out to enjoy the trees. She ran for more than 20 years, for a short time with her husband. Debbie ran many marathons and ultra-marathons in different states and met many different people. She ran alone often but preferred running with groups of friends through the Cook County and Will County Forest Preserves. Debbie said trees are a beautiful distraction from the effort of running and helped keep her from feeling quite so tired. Running and walking among trees relieved stress for Debbie and helped her feel physical healthy. The breeze from trees that touched her while running made her feel heavenly and she is grateful for their health benefits.

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Jones ran both short and long races. Among her favorites were the Indiana State Park runs, trails in the woods with the Park Forest Running and Pancake Club, the River-to-River team events in the rolling and sometimes steep hills of Southern Illinois, and the 24-hour run in Olander Park in Ohio.  Debbie expressed that her best experience was running through the giant trees in the Humboldt Redwoods Marathon in California.

Jones’ growing expertise and passion for trees led her to become an active member of the Urban Task Group of the Illinois Forestry Development Council from around 1989 to 2006. She shared that the council was an interesting place to gain knowledge because of the different perspectives of those in various aspects of the tree industry.  

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Debbie worked to increase her knowledge of plants, and especially trees, by completing the Master Gardener program back in 1989. She was a member of the Exotic Plant and Garden Club and the Prestwick Garden Club for many years. Debbie participated in the Entice program and continues to help with Stewardship Week at the Forest Resources Center.

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Debbie Jones is reluctant to pick a favorite tree. In her words, “It is hard to choose. Oaks have many unique shapes of the leaves. Tulip trees have the orange flowers and cool leaf shape. Beech trees have a smooth muscular trunk. Sequoias have a magnificent size and durability. Peach, apple, pears trees, and others provide fruit. Redbuds have beautiful flower color. Sugar maples have the gorgeous fall color. There are so many wonderful nut trees.”

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Even though her marathon days are over, you can find Debbie still walking among the trees in the local Forest Preserve, removing litter, helping with the Open Lands Commission in Hazel Crest, or just appreciating the trees that surrounded her in her backyard and along the streets in her local urban forests. She knows trees have their good and less good qualities, just like people, but Jones prefers to focus on the good.

Debbie is still dreaming about how to develop the Open Lands area. The teacher within her arises as she shares her dream of building a nature center and meeting site in the area so that they can continue to teach the next generation about caring for the trees. 

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