Hamilton, NJ: The Friends for the Abbott Marshlands (FFAM) at the Annual Meeting held in April at the Tulpehaking Nature Center celebrated the distinguished 2023 Mary Alessio Leck Award. The award is presented each year to an individual who has demonstrated exceptional volunteer service to the Abbott Marshlands. The award is named in honor of Mary Alessio Leck in gratitude for her many years of service to the marsh. See her in the “Turning the Tide” video on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qDW_JZHhzk
This year, the award was presented to Hamilton resident Bob Simmons, a hard-working and diligent supporter of the FFAM. Bob is often available to help with needed tasks at the marshlands. He has been a wonderful advocate of FFAM. Over the years Bob has done everything from directing parking for night programs, setup and breakdown of tables and chairs, to helping to hang photos/art for Tulpehaking Nature Center exhibits. Even before becoming an Abbott Marshlands Ambassador, Bob joined the welcome team to cover shifts at the nature center’s front desk. He assisted the Stewardship team by joining the Bordentown Bluffs Reboot project to reroute a steep trail near Crosswicks Creek. Bob was an early volunteer for Abbott Marshlands cleanups and is a jack of all trades. Those who are familiar with him were especially delighted with the selection of Bob Simmons for the 2023 Mary Alessio Leck award.
The Abbott Marshlands are situated in Lenapehoking, the traditional and ancestral homeland of the Lenape. These lands include over 3000 acres of open space along the Delaware River in Central New Jersey. Although a satellite view of the area quickly reveals its ecological unity, the lands there are actually divided among two counties, four municipalities, and numerous landowners. Crisscrossed by a canal, a railroad, and even a major highway interchange, the essential nature of the northernmost freshwater tidal marsh on the Delaware River becomes evident. It provides rich habitat for a wide variety of birds, fish, mammals, plants. FFAM is the only organization whose sole focus is the promotion and stewardship of the entire marshlands.
FFAM’s efforts include a volunteer trail stewardship program, an active calendar of programs on marshlands ecology and history, and other community outreach activities including a biennial juried photography exhibition in 2024. They coordinate their work with Tulpehaking Nature Center in Hamilton, the Mercer County Park Commission, the Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park and the Point Breeze property in Bordentown. The Abbott Marshlands Cooperative Stewardship Council members include representatives from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, the D&R Canal Commission, the New Jersey Department of Transportation, Mercer County, and local municipalities of Trenton, Hamilton, Bordentown City and Bordentown Township. The website, https://abbottmarshlands.org, provides extensive information regarding ecology, cultural history, archaeology, recreation, education and stewardship.
For more information, please email info@abbottmarshlands.org. Written by Margaret Simpson.
