Town of Norfolk’s Blair Crane Recognized as Tree Warden of the Year

NORFOLK — The Town of Norfolk is pleased to announce that the Massachusetts Tree Wardens’ and Foresters’ Association (MTWFA) presented the 24th annual Seth H. Swift Tree Warden of the Year award to Blair Crane, the Tree Warden and Director of Public Works for the Town of Norfolk.

MTWFA President Ed Olsen presented the elegant Silver Tree Award to Blair Crane at the association’s 112th annual meeting and conference on Jan. 7.

Blair is a United States Air Force Security Police Veteran and was a business owner prior to starting his career in public service many years ago. Beginning his public service career in a small Berkshire town, Blair was the town’s Highway Superintendent, Tree Warden, Harbormaster and even the official “Measurer of Wood and Bark”. 

For the past six years, Blair has worked for the Norfolk Department of Public Works and has been the Tree Warden and DPW Director for the past five years. While being responsible for multiple facets of the DPW, he believes that taking care of the town’s trees and helping to educate the public as the Tree Warden is not just a responsibility but also an incredible honor.

Blair has received numerous nominations for the Tree Warden of the Year award.

Here is just a small sample of what the people of Norfolk had to say about their tree warden:

• “Blair Crane has shown an immense dedication to the duties of Tree Warden. He is very active in the community with residents and the planting of new trees, educating the youth in the community on the importance of trees and the environment, and attending all of the meetings and programs to stay current and share ideas. He is a true leader and truly enjoys his work as tree
  warden and takes pride in the work he does. I believe, and I’m sure everyone else who has seen his commitment would agree, Blair Crane is more than deserving of the recognition of Tree Warden of the Year.” 
• “Blair is dedicated, enthusiastic, knowledgeable, personable, attentive not just about his assigned duties as head of the DPW and Tree Warden for Norfolk, but finds ways, on a daily basis, to extend these attributes to everything he does. He is the first one to roll up his sleeves to pitch in and do the “dirty work” along with his employees, endless hours plowing snow, educating
  community groups and supporting state & national organizations…It seems as if his day never ends, (he) just rolls into the next day seamlessly. His annual tree planting program of distributing seedlings to hundreds of town residents has been especially effective. His efforts in encouraging control with the overbuilding that upsets the balance of our environment is equally as important. As this is only the tip of the iceberg with his actions and potential impact with maintaining a healthy tree/human relationship, I strongly encourage him be considered the leading candidate for this award.” 
• “I am a Norfolk town citizen and have been impressed continuously with the commitment and responsiveness Mr. Crane shows to the town. He is very active on the Community Facebook page, keeping us informed with all the tree-related activities and plans. He assisted me with a dangerous tree situation involving neighbors and provided great insight, resulting in a safe outcome.”
• “During the past year, Blair has continued and expanded the Arbor Day celebrations with tree plantings and an increase of seedling giveaways of more than 200, for a total of over 500 during the past three years. In addition to those outstanding accomplishments, Blair also had the incredible opportunity to work with residents on planting donated full and vibrant mature trees in a few public locations, which will continue to enhance our canopy for decades.”

The Massachusetts Tree Wardens’ and Foresters’ Association is the nation’s oldest urban and community tree protection organization, founded in 1913 for the protection and preservation of trees. The position of tree warden is a municipal one,

mandated under Massachusetts General Law Chapter 87, with the charge to protect public shade trees within the 351 cities and towns of the Commonwealth.

For more information about the position of tree warden and about the association, visit the association’s website.

The association plans to hold a commemorative tree planting in the Town of Norfolk to honor Blair Crane’s award. Details will be posted here.

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