A POPULAR tree within the Alice Holt woodland has finally been renamed in honour of a long-serving member of the Forestry Commission, seven years after his death. The commission promised the family of George Burr Hutchinson that The Lonely Oak landmark, one of the most popular in the park, would be renamed George's Lonely Oak after his death in 2001. After discovering that the tree remained unchanged, George's son Kelly Hutchinson decided to ask the Forestry Commission about it and received an apology. George Burr Hutchinson worked for the Forestry Commission from the age of 15 and began by cycling the eight miles to and from work every day, regardless of the weather. In 1968 he married Sylvia Allcorn and after their first child, a daughter they named Lee, he was offered a house through the Forestry Commission in Brookers Row, Crowthorne, which remains as the family home to this day. Kelly Hutchinson spoke to The Herald about his father's 47 years of service. "My father's love of forestry was also his hobby and he spent many hours after work tending his much- loved garden, something that also led him on to private gardening jobs all over the area in his spare time," he explained. "He was very fond of the woodland and after his death one of the park rangers recommended the tree to be renamed as a memorial. "I honestly didn't think it was going to happen as it's now been seven years since his death and still the tree is being referred to as just The Lonely Oak, so I called the Forestry Commission and they apologised and said that it would now be changed." The tree has received a new plaque bearing the change in name and the new title will appear on new maps of the area. "The tree was the ideal place for us to scatter my father's ashes in 2001 due to its location. "It will serve as a memorial to the hard work my father George Burr Hutchinson put in to the forests and woodlands all over the South, but especially at Alice Holt, where he helped to shape the park that exists today."
