DEERFIELD — Longtime activist Mary “Polly” Bartlett has always had an affinity for conservation and rivers, and recently, the 92-year-old was honored for the work she has done to protect local ones.
“She was the one advocating for the Deerfield River before it was cool,” Deerfield River Watershed Trout Unlimited founding member and former President Kevin Parsons said. “No one has put in more hours than she.”
Bartlett was presented with the Robert “Bob” Anderson Conservation Award during the organization’s annual banquet last month at Champney’s Restaurant at The Deerfield Inn. More than 60 people attended the sold-out event.
“From helping to prevent a proposed 200-foot dam by the Army Corps of Engineers in the Stillwater section in the early 1970s to volunteering for area conservation projects at every turn, Polly has done it all,” said Deerfield River Watershed Trout Unlimited’s current President Michael Vito.
He said Bartlett’s passion for the environment includes stints on the Buckland Conservation Commission, Franklin County Conservation Commission and Deerfield River Valley Conservation Association. She continues to serve on the board of directors of the Deerfield River Watershed Association, as well.
Parsons said he nominated Bartlett this year because it was obvious who should receive the award, as far as he was concerned.
“The Bob Anderson Award was created eight years ago for one of our other founding members,” Parsons said. “People tend to think we’re a fishing club, but we’re not, we’re a conservation group. Bob has always brought us back to that, and keeps doing so, because if we take care of the fish, fishing will take care of itself. Bob has been our moral compass, so he received the first award.”
Parsons said that like Anderson, who has taken it upon himself to do a lot of projects along the South River in Conway, Bartlett has been working to conserve the Deerfield River for many decades.
“She’s a real champion of the Deerfield River,” he said. “She goes beyond being a steward.”
Bartlett, who can still be found on area hiking trails and ski slopes or reading plays with the Greenfield Drama Club a couple of times a year, has earned her reputation as an advocate for all things outdoors. She founded the Deerfield River Watershed Association in the 1990s and has been working on conservation efforts for decades.
“I’ve been interested in conservation since I was in high school,” Bartlett said. “I did a term paper on contour plowing way back. Then I majored in agriculture in college and got my master’s degree.”
Bartlett, who lives in Buckland, said when she, her husband and her three children moved to Western Massachusetts, there was no conservation commission, so she asked the Selectboard to form one. Her request was granted.
“I was on it once it was created,” she said. “I would walk the upper stretches of the Clesson River, and I would bring attention to dumping or other problems along the river. They didn’t like to hear it, but I didn’t stop.”
She said it takes a healthy watershed to make a beautiful river, and she was determined to see beautiful rivers running throughout Franklin County.
“Industries used to make the Deerfield River different colors every day,” she said. “We had to change.”
Bartlett said her conservation work wasn’t always appreciated, so the award was a surprise and honor.
Reach Anita Fritz at
413-772-0261, ext. 269 or afritz@recorder.com.