The
Times of
COPYRIGHT © The Times of
Date:
1997/04/26 Saturday Page: A1 Section: News Edition: Size: 1037 words
CAPTION:
Everyone
who knew Joe Bird knew he did a lot of good
but none of them knew how much he did until, without warning, he died and the
mourners shared stories.
``I
thought I knew all the groups he worked with but it was amazing to me to find
out how many more there were,'' said Peggy McNutt of the Delaware and Raritan
Greenway Program, which has taken the lead in preservation of
Bird, 44, worked for the city Shade Tree Bureau, planting,
pruning and caring for generally unappreciated city trees. He was usually the
only citizen attending public meetings of the county's open space and parks
commissions, where he'd take copious notes that could be used to fact check the
official minutes, and he was a volunteer for every outdoor-oriented worthwhile
cause in
``Any
time somebody was planting a tree or doing environmental education for kids, Joe would show up,'' said Liz Johnson, who knew Bird
for many years through her work at Isles, at the city's Department of
Recreation, Natural Resources and Culture and as chair of the county Open Space
Preservation Board.
``He
was the sole citizen who would show up at the Open Space Preservation Board,
and he'd take notes,'' Johnson said. ``He was not outgoing, he was something of
an introvert, yet he was comfortable standing up to speak about what was
important to him. In some ways he was a kind of environmental conscience for
people.''
YESTERDAY
WAS the first Arbor Day that anyone in town could remember without Bird around to plant trees, and today is the only time in 14
years that potatoes will be planted at Howell Farm to feed the hungry without
his help.
``Joe always showed up to help,'' said Pete Watson, administrator
of Howell Living History Farm. ``He cared a lot about our park system and he
was willing to get dirty to make things work. He always seemed to pick the hard
days to volunteer, the days when you get sweaty and dirty and you aren't in the
limelight.''
Bird was a private person, friends said, but he was not
reluctant to act on behalf of his convictions. He once walked from
Bird was as zealous learning about the environment as he was
defending it.
``He
was brilliant,'' said Phil Mosner, superintendent of
the Shade Tree Bureau. ``Sometimes I thought he was in the wrong job. Let's say
he was overqualified.''
When Bird took the job trimming city trees in 1989 he scarcely knew a
pine from an oak, Mosner said. Over the years Bird purchased hundreds of books on botany, biology, ecology and
other natural sciences. By the time of his death he was well known locally as a
superb amateur botanist who could identify every tree native to this region.
Among Bird's hobbies was scouring the forest in search of ``record
trees.'' The largest known persimmon tree in
``On a
Saturday, instead of working here for the time-and-half, he'd rather be out
hiking around Trenton Marsh looking for unusual trees,'' Mosner
said.
ON
MONDAY morning, Feb. 10, Bird went home from work after
complaining of a headache that felt as though it would split his skull. The
next day he didn't show up and he didn't call in sick. Anybody who knew Bird knew that wasn't like him.
``I'll
tell you what Joe Bird was like,'' said
Jean Shaddow, his boss at the Department of
Recreation, Natural Resources and Culture. ``A few years ago I was getting
dressed on a Saturday morning for a tree planting and the phone rang. This very
groggy voice tells me `I can't be there today but don't worry, I arranged for
somebody else to pick up the trees.' I realized it was Joe
and when I asked him what was wrong he said he was in the hospital and had just
had his appendix removed. Yet he'd arranged for somebody to sub for him and he
called in sick.''
When Bird neither showed for work nor called in sick a second day, Mosner drove to his house to investigate.
Ultimately
he called Bird's mother, who then called police, who entered
the house through a window and found Bird unconscious. He was
rushed to
``He was
over at my house every Friday night for the last eight years, but when he sat
down to dinner he wouldn't mention that he'd spent all day in the Trenton Marsh
clearing trails,'' said Maurice. ``He was over for dinner the night before he
went home sick with a headache and never complained about a thing.''
Maurice
learned much about her brother in the painful process of taking care of his
possessions. There was the letter she found from the city thanking him for
wearing the Batman costume in the Thanksgiving Day parade.
``I
never knew he did that,'' she said.
Maurice
met a woman who told the story of mentioning to Bird, on an
April 12 a couple of years ago, that she had not prepared her income taxes yet
and she didn't even know where to get the forms. The next morning she found a
1040 form placed neatly under the windshield wiper of her car.
``He
was always doing things like that,'' Maurice said. ``People would just think
out loud about what they had to get done and then he would do it without
drawing attention to himself.''
NOTE:
Family and friends of Joe Bird will gather
at 4:30 p.m. tomorrow afternoon, rain or shine, in
The Times of
COPYRIGHT © The Times of
Date: 1997/05/18 Sunday Page: Section: Editorial Edition: Size: 220 words
Thank you for printing the story about Joe Bird, ``City mourns passing of a
quiet activist'' (April 26). I knew him for over 20 years but hadn't seen him
in awhile. He was a great guy, but I never realized how great until his many
worthwhile accomplishments were highlighted on the front page of your
newspaper. I'm sorry that his life ended so suddenly. What a loss of a fine
person.
I hope his books and notes find a home where they can continue to
make a difference in
I saw Joe for the last time about a year ago. He was beaming with
joy, as usual. Now I know why -- he was living his dream. His death is a sad
reminder of how short and precious life is.
Susan L. Albert
Rocky Hill