ALTON - Alton Park and Recreation Department along with the Oriental Garden Committee held the 45th Annual Tree Dedication Sunday, October 15, at the Oriental Garden in Gordon Moore Park.
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The area was originally set aside in 1985 to create a place of beauty and solitude. Over the past 44 years, the Park and Recreation Department has planted more than 7683 trees in honor and memory of loved ones throughout the community. 
"It's really almost hard to believe," Mayor Brant Walker said. "You always say you want things to exceed your expectations, years ago the stream was full of debris, the trees were all over grown, and without the help of Dr. Mohyuddin, the Sheppards, and the Oriental Garden Committee this would not be done. A primary driver of this was Dr. Mohyuddin and his family, if it weren't for them then we couldn't have gotten this done."
Mayor Walker gave a huge thanks for the tremendous amount of help from community members such as the Mohyuddins and the Sheppards and said that without help from citizens like them projects like this wouldn't be such a success.
"What you're seeing is this park come roaring back through great citizens," Mayor Walker said. "How many people that care about this park and this community is just unbelievable. I just want to say thank you for a beautiful garden."
Trees were dedicated to the memory and honor of the following during Sunday's service:
Lynn and Andy Adams, Angie Braida's parents, Bob Braaten, Rosemarie and Jack Brueggeman, Mark DeVere, Dr. Edward DuVivier, Herschel Epps Sr., Mary Kaye Fitzgerald, Virginia Foster, Laura (Duke) Hellrung, Elsie Ann Honaker, Elsie Arthur Honaker, Louise Pearl Honaker, Lydia Irene Honaker, Zack Hunter, Gerald Maberry, Haley Michel, The Mohyuddin Family, Dale and Jo Anne Ontis, Berland and Davona Paul, Betty G. Rogers, Mary Jennings Sackman, Edna Shawver, Joan Sheppard and Charles Sheppard, Greg Simms, Jim and Carol Springate, Nick Warner, Clara Winfree and Rosemary Wuellner.
Statuary donations were made in honor of the following:
Anaya Gul Khan, Maryam Gul Mohyuddin, Maymuna Asif Mohyuddin, Zainib Gul Khan, Zareena Gul Rehman and Cynthia A. Simms.
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