IllinoisFarmBureau

Travel to Quincy in Western Illinois each spring, and it’s no secret why this town has been dubbed Tree City USA.

Each May, the town hosts the Quincy Dogwood Festival, and this year’s event is planned to be one of the best ever.

“It is kind of the first thing after the big long winter, so I think people are ready to get out and see a parade,” Mary Efferin of the Quincy Dogwood Committee says. “We don’t have too many parades in Quincy, so when one comes, everyone shows up.”

Efferin says the festival, now in its 35th year, is always held the week before Mother’s Day and is kicked off with a pageant to announce the little Dogwood King and Queen. The parade starts at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday with more than 125 entries and ends downtown at the carnival site.