Volunteer Spotlight: Nan Bartow
The Friends of Beaver Ponds Park (FoBPP), located between Beaver Hills and Newhallville, sends out a weekly newsletter highlighting the accomplishments of our previous week’s work and inviting volunteers to join us the following week. Longtime FoBPP organizer and URI board member Nan Bartow writes the reports, and for the past several years we have highlighted volunteers through the Volunteer Spotlight column. This summer, we finally took on the daunting task of trying to summarize all that Nan does for the park and our group, and we are pleased to share it with the broader URI community.
When I asked Nan about how her journey at Beaver Ponds Park began, she replied that our current incarnation of FoBPP formed in 2002 when she received an alarmed telephone call from a local resident that the north and south ponds were being slowly drained and the area would soon become a dangerous swamp unless the draining was halted. She and a small group revived FoBPP, which had previously organized a park cleanup. Managing to bring the level of the water back to normal, they started beautifying the park. They also obtained grants from the Community Foundation of Greater New Haven and URI as well as a URI intern to help them. Beginning small, they created one clearing whereby visitors would be able to see the water. Nan said that, in these early days of FoBPP, they didn’t know about the importance of removing invasive species and planting native perennials. Chris Ozyck, Colleen Murphy-Dunning, our successive URI interns, and faculty from the Yale School of the Environment were extremely important mentors and educators for the group.
Nan’s favorite activity in the park is to restore natural areas by cutting out vines and other invasive vegetation and replacing them with native plants. She also enjoys the bonds our community has developed working together in the park. While we face some challenges as we deal with plant theft and sustaining our group, Nan values our enthusiasm and strong partnerships with URI, NH Parks, US Fish and Wildlife, Audubon CT, and the Garden Club of New Haven. As we work toward achieving our goals, she is always thinking about more questions, such as how to maintain our new natural play area and how to get water service in the park. Nan remains committed to highlighting everyone’s contributions in our weekly reports, fondly remembering Colleen’s advice on the importance of recognition. We, in turn, recognize and are profoundly grateful for the many ways Nan brings our group together and makes our work in Beaver Ponds Park possible.