‘This project gave me a purpose’: 84-year-old spearheads restoration of wetland and pond in Bartlett

On the eve of Earth Day, about 50 students from St. Isidore School in Bloomingdale got a firsthand lesson in how one person can make a difference.

The students visited Hearthwood Senior Living in Bartlett Tuesday for a celebration centered around the community-wide ecological restoration of Hearthwood’s two-acre public wetland and pond. An effort spearheaded by 84-year-old resident Joyce Zemba.

“I never thought it was going to turn out to be this big of a deal, but I'm very happy about it,” Zemba said. “It was such a joy for me to do it because after eight years of living here, I was feeling kind of useless and unmotivated. This project gave me a purpose.”

When Zemba, a longtime Catholic schoolteacher and principal in Rockford, and her husband were looking for a senior living community eight years ago, she had one requirement: a view of the water.

“I didn’t want to look over city streets and lots of traffic,” she said. “The peace, the calmness, the meditation. I think it’s good for your health.”

She chose a third-floor apartment with a view of the community pond and surrounding wetland. Over the years, she watched that view deteriorate.

“Invasive species were taking over. The weeds were so high and we really couldn’t even see any water,” she said. “Wildlife disappeared gradually. Then what really got me was when the whole pond was covered with toxic algae that killed two deer.”

A few months ago she decided enough was enough. She researched a plan for restoring the pond and made her case to Eric Gross, executive director at Hearthwood, who supported her efforts.

Working with the nearby subdivision, they partnered with McCloud Aquatics to reclaim the pond and wetland from invasive species that were choking it nearly to death.

McCloud, a family-owned environmental and lake management firm, devised a long-term plan that includes invasive species mitigation, shoreline stabilization and native replanting to improve biodiversity and water quality.

“Turns out that if we had done nothing, in a few years the pond would have dried up,” Gross said.

With the view partially restored and pond and wetlands on the road to recovery, the students joined residents and civic leaders Tuesday for a morning of environmental education, a guided eco walk and hands-on planting.

Eight-grader Emma LeMone said she enjoyed the eco walk portion of the celebration, when students learned about the native plants growing around the pond and wetland area.

“It showed how beautiful nature is,” she said.

Hanover Township Supervisor Brian McGuire said he hopes one lesson that the students would take from their trip is that the changes for the better all started with one person.

“Joyce identified an issue and made real change happen,” he said. “One person can make a difference.”