In appreciation: Joanne Wojtusiak

You never know what kind of critters you’re going to run into when you take a hike in Housatonic Meadows Park. I’ve seen bald eagles, talons raised, fighting for perches. I’ve seen a red-tailed hawk glide like silk away from a band of pesky, squawking crows. And a while back I had the good fortune to observe a merganser dive under the surface of the river, chase down a hapless trout, come up for air with the trout (almost as big as the merganser itself) stuffed half in and half out of its mouth — only to be set upon and chased all over the river by all the other hungry mergansers. I’ve even had the good fortune to have a short (for safety’s sake) silent staring match in the woods with a big ol’ moose (I lost that staring contest right quick; the moose lowered its head and came in my direction).

But I must say that the critter that surprised me the most and made me most proud to be there with her, by her actions, happened a couple of weeks ago.

A small group of concerned citizens was gathered in a loose circle chatting with a member of the park ranger police. We were asking him questions about how we could protest the cutting of the beautiful trees in the park. He mentioned that the reason he was there at all was because “someone” had broken the law and  spray-painted, in large red letters (neatly done)on the roadway pavement, a short four-line message to “stop the cutting of the trees …”

No sooner had the words left his lips than a walking cane and two black sneakers supporting a hunched figure (hunched from Parkinson’s disease and other ailments) slowly inched forward to the center of the circle. Both the left and the right sneaker were stained with flecks of red paint.  Above them a wizened smiling face slowly raised itself proudly and gazed up to the park ranger policeman and looked him straight in the eye. She took her cane and gestured to her sneakers and said: “It was me, officer. I did it. Are you going to arrest me?”    

Joanne Wojtusiak, a spirited, caring and dedicated advocate passed away in her sleep on Dec 13, 2021.

Michael Moschen

Cornwall