Honor Rezsin Adams' Service

Senate Resolution No. 609 BY: Senator BRESLIN COMMENDING Rezsin Adams for her many years of dedicated involvement and selfless service to her community WHEREAS, From time to time this Legislative Body takes note of certain extraordinary individuals it wishes to recognize for their valued contributions to the success and progress of society and publicly acknowledge their endeavors which have enhanced the basic humanity among us all; and WHEREAS, This Legislative Body is justly proud to commend Rezsin Adams for her many years of dedicated involvement and selfless service to her community, and to wish her a very Happy 90th Birthday to be celebrated at a party on Wednesday, February 15, 2017, at the Westminster Presbyterian Church, in Albany, New York; and WHEREAS, Known as the "Grande dame of the local peace and environmental movements," Rezsin Adams has been the heart of Albany's peace and justice movement since she moved there in 1958; and WHEREAS, For numerous decades, Rezsin Adams has been an outspoken advocate for many causes including the environment, civil rights, and the Vietnam War; and WHEREAS, Born in the Bronx, Rezsin Adams was a headstrong girl who often wandered through the streets of New York City looking for new and exciting adventures; as a teenager, she met other young liberals in a loft in Greenwich Village and talked about how they would change the world; and WHEREAS, After high school, Rezsin Adams majored in biology at the University of Rochester in the late 1940s; while a student, she worked at the Marine Biology Laboratory at Woods Hole, where she studied with a young teacher named Rachel Carson, who published Silent Spring, an influential book on environmentalism; and WHEREAS, Rezsin Adams met her future husband, Ted Adams, a fellow student, on her 18th birthday in Rochester; the couple married two years later, and together they raised two children; and WHEREAS, Beginning in the early 1960s, Rezsin Adams 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 the City of Albany in a largely successful attempt to keep the city from building a dump in the endangered Karner Blue butterfly's habitat; and WHEREAS, Interested in increasing public awareness of, and appreciation for, the natural resources of New York, Rezsin Adams founded Save the Pine Bush; this vital organization's efforts resulted in the creation of the Albany Pine Bush Preserve Management Commission, and the preservation of a couple of thousand acres of Pine Bush; and WHEREAS, As President of Save the Pine Bush, Rezsin Adams has been instrumental in raising awareness and garnering interest from the community; through their advocacy and education efforts, students and the public come to study and explore this unique ecosystem; and WHEREAS, Rezsin Adams has donated much of her time and energy to saving the Pine Bush; she cooks and serves lasagna for their monthly meetings, attends public hearings, and donates the money she has made watching neighborhood children; and WHEREAS, In addition to her invaluable service to the Albany Pine Bush, Rezsin Adams helped found the Social Justice Center in Albany in

1981; she helped manage and worked in its store; and WHEREAS, Rezsin Adams was also involved in the US Peoples China Friendship Association where she helped with their annual China Bazaar; volunteered for years at the WAMC fund drive, and at the Tulip Fest; fought against unfair re-assessment of properties in Center Square; and protested against the death penalty; and WHEREAS, This feisty and compassionate woman helped prepare and serve both breakfast and lunch for the needy at the Westminster Presbyterian Church; and WHEREAS, A fixture on the streets of Albany's Center Square, Rezsin Adams truly believes that we have to do everything we can to bring about change; with a warm smile, she gets up, shows up and makes a difference every day of her life; and WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body that those who enhance the well-being and vitality of their community and have shown a long and sustained commitment to excellence certainly have earned the recognition and applause of all the citizens of this great Empire State; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to commend Rezsin Adams for her many years of dedicated involvement and selfless service to her community; and be it further RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted to Rezsin Adams.