By Steve Mosco
Queens was once home to hundreds of thousands of acres of wetlands, but now conservationists actively work to hang on to the last shreds of natural beauty in the concrete borough.
The environment lost one of those conservationists in 2011, when Kew Gardens Hills resident and head of the Flushing Meadows Corona Park Conservancy Pat Dolan was killed after she was struck by a car on Union Turnpike.
Dolan led tours through the borough’s wetlands, sat in bird blinds with elected officials and tirelessly advocated for shoreline and wildlife improvements. The late outdoor advocate’s efforts were recognized this week after the city Parks Department renamed a trail around Flushing’s Willow Lake in her honor.
Janice Melnick, a former northeast Queens city parks administrator and current head of Flushing Meadows Corona Park, called Dolan a stalwart defender of city parks and a nature lover.
“She loved to bird watch and to examine the plant life,” said Melnick from the entrance to the trail in Al Mauro Playground, at Park Drive East and 73rd Terrace. “It is a testament to her efforts that so many people are here today.”
On hand at the dedication were members of the community who experienced Dolan’s dedicated spirit as well as elected officials, including U.S. Rep. Grace Meng (D-Flushing), City Comptroller John Liu, state Assemblyman David Weprin (D-Little Neck), state Sen. Toby Stavisky (D-Whitestone), Assemblyman Michael Simanowitz (D-Flushing) and Dolan’s longtime friend, Borough President Helen Marshall.
Marshall said Dolan, who often chided elected officials for not working hard enough, possessed a style all her own and a charm just below the surface.
“I’m honored to call her a friend and I know she is looking down on us now,” Marshall said. “We should continue to honor her by endeavoring to make our community a better place to live and to work.”
Many at the dedication related personal stories of their experiences with the nature-loving Dolan. Simanowitz recalled trekking through mud to reach one of Dolan’s cherished bird blinds along the Willow Lake trail.
The assemblyman remembered Dolan pointing out birds and naming each one while he tried in vain to spot a single bird for close to an hour.
“You haven’t lived until you’ve spent 45 minutes in a bird blind with Pat,” he said. “Today is a reminder of how much she cared about the parks and this community.”
Norma Stegmaier, secretary of the Flushing Meadows Corona Park Conservancy and a close friend of Dolan’s, said the avid gardener planted a germ of an idea in the hearts of Queens leadership to keep city parks a strong asset to the borough.
“She wanted to create, enrich and preserve the parks so everyone could enjoy them,” she said. “With her help, we can all come here for something green and something beautiful.”
Reach reporter Steve Mosco by e-mail at smosco@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4546.
