Friends of a beloved nature advocate honored her life and memory with a viewing platform in Franklin where people can view native birds and insects.
The Friends of the Greenway and Franklin Bird Club dedicated the Barbara McRae Memorial Viewing Platform the afternoon of Sunday, June 23. At the end of the remarks, Macon County Commissioner Gary Shields pulled the ribbon to the platform while John and Cathy Sill unveiled a sign with a picture of Barbara McRae at that spot.
The platform is located behind Wesley’s Playground, next to the dog park. McRae died in March 2021.
“Her love of birding and nature in general made this platform an easy choice for us,” said Rita St. Clair, a member of the Friends of the Greenway board.
St. Clair talked about McRae’s work with the Little Tennessee River Greenway, the Women’s History Trail and with Franklin Bird Club, among other projects.
“Barbara was a very quiet, soft-spoken person who had no apparent ego that you would consider,” Stan Polanski said. “And yet, she was the catalyst for so many lasting projects that are going to live.”
Stan Polanski described McRae as “one of those rare spirits who found something to be joyful about every single day of the week.” Regarding nature, he called McRae’s curiosity “childlike” in how she was captivated by things others would take for granted.
“For instance, you and I probably know that there are several species of dragonfly here along the Greenway,” Polanski said. “Barbara could tell you what time of day each species was active and what their behavior was like.”
Mary Polanski said if McRae were there today, “she would just be jumping up and down happy.”
“Barbara thought anything was possible because she had faith that there were enough people who shared with her a love of the community and a desire to do something to make this a good place to live,” Stan Polanski said. “She would be very pleased to see all of you community-spirited nature lovers gathered here today.”
“Our admiration of her relationship with nature motivates us to take our children, our grandchildren, to take an opportunity anytime it comes to revel in the outdoors,” Mary Polanski said.
McRae wrote over 100 haikus in the winter and spring of 2018 while she was undergoing cancer treatments. Mary Polanski read the first, from Jan. 5, 2018, which read “Light through bare trees, wetland woods, hear the healing storms.” Others were “Spring jazz, a wood thrust, it’s trill floating over the rains, gentle percussion,” and “Sleeping heron keeps one yellow eye open to glare at me.”
Cathy Sill talked about the platform’s location as one of McRae’s favorite nature spots.
“One day, John and I were birding here, and we were thinking about ways that we could honor Barbara for her many, many contributions to our community,” Sill said. “And we thought, what better way to do it than to build a viewing platform in the very area that she loved so much. And the very place where she spent so many hours.”
John Sill said the path McRae created had an issue as the view would diminish as the flora would grow, so the platform solves that problem.
“Now, those of you who know Barbara, Barbara’s not a very tall woman. So she had doubly the problem,” John Sill said. “So if you have a platform that is above the growth, you get to see a window into that world out there that she loves so very much.”
St. Clair talked about the two-year process of building the platform, which included building near wetlands, conservation easements, state approvals and proof of no impact, among more. Eventually, work began in June 2023 with an all-volunteer crew.
“We’re proud to say that only private donations covered all the costs associated with the platform,” St. Clair.
The platform includes signage on the common birds and insects. A sign before the platform shows a picture of McRae in that spot.