In January 2017, two storms hit the Albany area leaving beautiful scenic landscapes, like Tift Park and Radium Springs, in ruin. In response to these damaging storms, Grow Albany was established to replant and distribute trees to these affected areas. A year following their commitment to replant trees in the area, Grow Albany announced the second Community Planting Day scheduled for Saturday, February 17 at Tift Park, 1301 N Monroe Street, from 9 a.m. to noon.
 
The first corporate call Grow Albany received was from Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital, who knew immediately they wanted to restore the damaged Tift Park area. Phoebe CEO Joel Wernick said, “Tift Park is our backyard. It is frequently used by employees and patients’ families as a place to walk or play, so it was a natural response for us to lead the charge in restoring the area. We are proud to partner with Grow Albany to host the Community Planting Day at Tift Park. Planting these trees will not only be beneficial to our physical health, but also to the health of our community.”
 
The Tift Park Community Planting Day is hosted by Phoebe and further sponsored by SB&T, Mission Change and the Darsey Family Foundation. The Arbor Day Foundation is providing 500, three-gallon hardwood trees to give away to Albany residents at Tift Park that same day. Anyone is welcome to come out to receive trees; however, there will be a limit of three trees per person.
 
If you or your organization would like to volunteer for this family-friendly event, please register online at growalbany.com or contact Judy Bowles with Keep Albany-Dougherty Beautiful at 229-430-5270 or [email protected] before February 15. Participants who register prior to February 9 will receive a commemorative T-shirt.