Following five years of work, the Trustees of Reservations (TTOR) Youth Conservation Corps has completed work on a trail along the south end of Cook Pond to create a rustic walking path and reclaim and create public access to this beautiful space. In order to complete the project, Friends and colleagues of Partners School Wellness Coordinator Marcia Picard decided to donate a bench in memory of her mother, who died at the age of 98 two years ago. "To have something dedicated to my Mom is extremely heartwarming," said Picard. "It's a wonderful way to remember someone who was so connected to the earth," said United Neighbors of Fall River Executive Director Wendy Garf-Lipp. Mass in Motion Fall River plans to continue work around the circumference of the Pond to eventually create a three and a half-mile walking loop all the way around this space that has been inaccessible to the public for decades. Click here for a three-minute video of the dedication. Click here and here for pictures of the work on the trail by the TTOR Youth Conservation Corps. For information about plans to develop a path around Cook Pond, contact Fall River Mass In Motion coordinator Julie Kelly at 508-324-2405. (Bottom photo by Marcia Picard)

(Top row) Standing at the western end of Amity Street just past the Henry Lord Community School, Mass in Motion Fall River Coordinator Julianne Kelly invites staff and board members from Partners for a Healthier Community to join her for a dedication of the bench donated by friends and colleagues of Partners School Wellness Coordinator Marcia Picard in memory of her mother, Dorothy M. Potter. (Row two) Marcia sits on the bench to enjoy the views of the Pond. (Row three) Julie Kelly and Eric Andrade of the Mass in Motion/1422 Project join her. (Row four) The trail along the Pond stretches for a third of a mile offering many views of the Pond. (Row five) Fall River Department of Community Maintenance employees Brandon Rebello and Michael Burks finish up spreading stone dust on the path to keep it clear and easily walkable. (Bottom row) A panoramic view of the Pond was taken earlier in the summer from the location of the bench by Ms. Picard.