WHEREAS: Rezsin Adams was born on February 13, 1927, and grew up in the Bronx; and

WHEREAS: Rezsin is an unassuming hero, a woman of small stature who always has a smile on her face. However, she has been at the heart of Albany’s peace and justice movement for decades and was dubbed the “Grande Dame of the local peace and environmental movements,” by the Times Union in 2007, and she hasn’t slowed down yet; and

WHEREAS: In her eight decades, she has protested the Vietnam War (and every war since), was jailed for civil disobedience while protesting the Persian Gulf War, worked for civil rights, fought with the anti-nuclear movement, advocated on behalf of striking farm workers, helped protect a unique ecosystem by being one of the forces behind the creation of the Pine Bush Preserve, and has for years fought, in a largely successful attempt, to prevent a dump from being built in the endangered Blue Karner butterfly’s habitat; and

WHEREAS: Rezsin has been a determined voice for the Save the Pine Bush (SPB) efforts since she moved to the Capital Region in 1958. She is a founder and president of SPB and has played an integral part in the dozens of lawsuits over developments in the Pine Bush since the inception of SPB in 1978. The results were the creation of the Albany Pine Bush Preserve Management Commission and preservation of thousands of acres of Pine Bush; and

WHEREAS: Advocacy and education efforts led by Rezsin also resulted in students studying the Pine Bush at the Farnsworth Middle School, and the Pine Bush going from a largely unknown and ignored ecosystem to a place that is common knowledge for people who live in the Albany region; and

WHEREAS: Rezsin doesn’t stop at the advocacy work, she has also cooked all of the lasagna and pies for all of the approximately 450 Save the Pine Bush monthly lasagna dinners since the early 1980s; and

WHEREAS: She has traveled to Washington D.C. protesting things like the inauguration of George W. Bush and the Iraq War and traveled to China in conjunction with her involvement in the U.S. Peoples China Friendship Association; and

WHEREAS: Rezsin was the first dissident Albany County Democratic Committeemember to be elected to the Albany County Democratic Committee in the late 1960s and she is still a Committeemember. She has worked tirelessly to get progressive politicians elected to Albany City Government and worked on many campaigns; and

WHEREAS: For decades, Rezsin volunteered at the Social Justice Center store. She was the backbone of the store and the reason for the doors remaining open. She volunteered for years at the WAMC fund-drive, and at the Tulipfest and helps prepare the breakfast and lunch at the Westminster Presbyterian Church; and

WHEREAS: Rezsin was quoted saying, “I believe we have to do everything we can to bring about change.” She was married to Ted Adams in 1947. After 64 years of marriage, Ted passed away in 2011. They have two children, Frances and David, and two grandchildren.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Kathy M. Sheehan, Mayor of the City of Albany, New York do hereby proclaim Monday, February 13, 2017 to be:

“Rezsin Adams Day”
in the City of Albany, and ask the residents to join me in wishing Reszin a very happy 90th birthday and thank her for all that she has done for our community and beyond.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto
set my hand and caused the Seal of the
City of Albany, New York to be affixed
this 8th day of February, 2017.
Signed by Kathy Sheehan, Mayor

Published in March/April 2017 Newsletter
Save the Pine Bush Newsletter