Girls Inc Visits River Walk (July 29th 2026)
Girls Inc of the Berkshires traveled from Pittsfield to Great Barrington to visit River Walk and learn about the trail creation and connections. River Walk's Greenagers Internship Team provided the visitors with a guided tour.
Elia DelMolino, Greenagers Conservation Director, led the way as we began our exploration in the downstream River Walk section. Elia began with an acknowledgement of the Stockbridge Munsee Mohican heritage at the Bridge Street Talcott Stone monument. He also talked about the importance of the work being done to protect the Red Oak tree, a keystone habitat species. Georgie Godfrey helped us to identify sassafras, a native tree with a delightful fragrance and 3 different leaf shapes. The girls also wanted to learn how to identify poison ivy, and Elia was able to help. We talked about W. E. B. Dubois and his emphasis on the importance of river conservation and then traveled northwards to visit the upstream River Walk section.
The Housatonic River was the focus of our upstream conservation. Elia talked about the sources of the river and many of the girls realized that they had seen the Housatonic in the Pittsfield neighborhood areas. A visit to the William Stanley 0verlook provided an opportunity to discuss the invention of the electric transformer and the unintended consequences of PCB pollution. Current River Walk Intern, Bethany Sweet, talked about her weekly work to maintain the trail and her investigation of River Walk plants.
As we came to the end of our visit, the girls had the opportunity to consider the power of volunteerism as they learned about the many folks who pitched in the enormous job of riverside cleanups and the development of a community trail.
Thank you for your visit, Girls Inc! We are looking forward to future collaborations with you at River Walk!
Girls Inc Visit River Walk PHOTO GALLERY
Written by Christine Ward, River Walk Director
