By Amy Markarian, Senior Copywriter

On October 15, a group of friends, family members, and Wildlands’ staff members gathered to celebrate the life of Wildlands’ volunteer, Pat O’Rourke. It was a morning spent remembering a mother, grandmother, sister, and friend. Stories were traded over breakfast, and a hike through Halfway Pond Preserve led the group to a simple wooden bench overlooking a cherished view from the trail. There, a plaque was installed to dedicate the bench in Pat O’Rourke’s memory.

In the years before her death, Pat had been both a Wildlands Trust volunteer and an active member of the Friends of Halfway Pond hiking group. She spent countless hours enjoying nature and the company of friends on the same trails walked in her memory that morning. In 2019, one of Pat’s contributions to Wildlands had been to assist in carrying a volunteer-made wooden bench through the woods to its home along the trail. Its purpose was to provide a resting spot for visitors who traverse the hilly path--a place to pause and appreciate the scenic overlook of Halfway Pond.

Pat had deeply valued Plymouth’s natural spaces and the community of friends who shared her enthusiasm for outdoor recreation. Her family recognized this and, after her passing, presented Wildlands Trust with a generous donation in her memory. As a token of Wildlands’ appreciation for Pat’s many contributions, and for the gift that was received from her loved ones, a memorial plaque was installed on the bench that she had carried, ensuring that her memory will continue to live on in the woods she so enjoyed.

At the dedication ceremony, Pat’s son Mike spoke in remembrance of his mother, as did Wildlands’ President and Executive Director, Karen Grey. Fellow volunteers and hiking friends Marilynn Atterbury and Betsy Hall also eulogized their friend and shared Robert Frost’s poem, “Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening,” which is quoted in the plaque’s inscription. Pat's brother Jack highlighted the synchronicity of his sister’s longstanding fondness for beech trees and the towering beech that shaded her bench with yellowing autumn leaves. At the close of the ceremony, participants followed the trail back out of the woods, reflecting on Frost’s words:

The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep.
And miles to go before I sleep.
And miles to go before I sleep.

For her friendship and commitment to our community, Wildlands gratefully remembers Pat O’Rourke.