David All · UA '97

I grew up in Upper Arlington — starting on Chester, moving to Henthorn for middle and high school, and finally Ashmore. I traded in the lacrosse stick for the pole saw, but the footwork's the same. My roots here go back generations: my grandparents, the Seegers, raised my father and aunt on Wesleyan and were founding members of UA Lutheran Church.

I returned to Upper Arlington after my father passed away. Walking past Jones and Barrington, I was moved by the ancient Oaks — the living vision of the stewards who built this neighborhood. My career had taken me all over the world. My roots stayed here.

I spent my youth under one of the tallest oak canopies in the city. In middle school, I wrote a poem called 'Tree Heaven' that was published in the UA News. My parents planted trees everywhere we lived in UA; today, those trees are thriving.

What I brought back wasn't just a business plan — it was a practitioner's path. From old-growth forests on the Olympic Peninsula to heritage apple orchards in Pennsylvania, I learned that a tree is a patient, not a project. Antiseptic tools, clean angles, and the nightly walk to see what has changed.

Arlington Tree Co. is an honest way to make a living. I work the streets I grew up on, using a few razor-sharp tools from my grandfather's collection to care for what's been here longer than any of us.

Forty years apart

One Soul, Many Trees.

Read the poems →