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January 4, 2010
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America's Largest Fundraiser for Tree Research Secures STIHL as Two-Time Title Sponsor
2010 STIHL Tour des Trees to kick off in Chicago

(VIRGINIA BEACH, Va.) – STIHL Inc., a leading manufacturer of handheld outdoor power equipment, has renewed its title sponsorship for the STIHL Tour des Trees to benefit the TREE Fund. This weeklong cycling event has become America's largest fundraiser to improve the care of trees through research and education.

The 2009 STIHL Tour des Trees raised nearly a half million dollars to benefit the Tree Research and Education Endowment (TREE) Fund. Since its inception in 1992, the Tour des Trees has generated more than $4.4 million and has funded a variety of research around the world, such as new disease control methods that could reduce pesticide usage, new technology to increase post-planting survival in urban trees, and improved safety methods for arborists and other tree care professionals.

"As the first-ever title sponsor of the Tour des Trees in 2009, STIHL was instrumental in bringing the Tour's message of responsible environmental stewardship to a wider national audience, and we're so pleased to welcome them back this year," said Janet Bornancin, executive director of the TREE Fund.

"People sometimes wonder why a manufacturer of chain saws would sponsor an event for the TREE Fund, but tree care professionals use those saws every day to maintain overall tree health, remove unsafe branches, and actually save some trees that would otherwise die from disease," Bornancin continued.

 "We've been proud to partner with the TREE Fund for ten years to promote the health of urban trees," said Roger Phelps, promotional communications manager for STIHL Inc. "Our goal is to care for the environment in all that we do, whether through the manufacture and design of our product, or by supporting the work of organizations like the TREE Fund that make a difference in our environment and quality of life."

The 2010 STIHL Tour des Trees will launch from Chicago's magnificent Millennium Park on July 18 and travel westward to the Mississippi River and Iowa before looping back to the world famous Morton Arboretum in Chicago's western suburbs on July 24. The riders will make a grand entrance during the International Tree Climbing Championship and International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) Arbor Fair being held there. The 2009 Tour began from New York City's Central Park and cycled 500 miles through New England on its way to Providence, RI.

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