In Remembrance of Those Who Have Gone Before Us

Lake Watch founder and long-time President (1991 - 2012)

Col. (Ret.) Richard Marshall Bronson, of Montgomery, formerly of Alexander City, died on Monday, June 10, 2024 at the age of 90 surrounded by his loving family. He was born on August 16, 1933 in Gaines, Michigan to William Augustus Bronson and Helen Gillespie Bronson. He married his high school sweetheart, Mary Ann Ivicic, on August 8, 1953. He graduated from Central Michigan College in 1956 with a bachelor's degree in math & physics and a US Army commission as a 2nd Lt in the Artillery.

His Army career spanned 28 years - tours included serving in Vietnam from 1966-1967, Ft Sill, OK; Ft Leavenworth, KS; Ft Bliss, TX; Germany; Korea; Alexandria, VA; and Maxwell Air Force Base, AL. He retired in 1984 as a Colonel and headed to beautiful Lake Martin. Because of his life-long love for the outdoors, nature, and the environment, his focus after retirement became all about service and volunteerism. He was active in numerous civic and volunteer organizations.

Dick’s list of environmental activities and achievements are both long and substantial. Dick founded Lake Watch of Lake Martin (LWLM) in 1991. As President of LWLM for more than 20 years, he worked for the preservation and enhancement of waters in the Tallapoosa River Basin, and throughout Alabama. Under Dick’s leadership, the group’s list of accomplishments includes:

• joining the then-newly formed Alabama Water Watch Program (AWW) in 1993, and having several members trained and certified in water monitoring – the first citizen volunteer group to do so,
• establishing a network of water quality monitoring sites from headwater streams, through the lake, down to Martin Dam,
• contributing over 1,600 water quality records from the Lake Martin Watershed to the statewide AWW online water quality database,
• working at the local and state level to advocate for and help mitigate point source pollution problems in Lake Martin,
• actively participating in supporting and developing policies to protect Lake Martin, and other public waters in Alabama,
• partnering with Auburn University scientists in the drafting of various proposals to Alabama Power Company, USDA-CSREES, and World Wildlife Fund, and,
• partnering with Auburn University scientist in various water quality/watershed studies in the Tallapoosa Basin that: 1) quantified pollutants and pathogens in the Tallapoosa Basin, and 2) initiated environmental-education workshops for youth, which led to the foundation of AWW’s AMSTI-endorsed Exploring Alabama’s Living Streams environmental education curriculum.

Dick personally spearheaded many significant efforts, including the following:

• conducted an environmental education program, which his wife Mary Ann named ‘Living Streams’ for hundreds of school children, scouts and teachers yearly at Camp ASCCA over more than two decades, instilling an environmental ethic in thousands of our youth,
• with his wife Mary Ann, hosted more than a dozen international groups, composed of educators, scientists, and fellow volunteer monitors from around the world at their home to socialize and exchange information on community based watershed stewardship,
• was a leader in the establishment of a ‘State of Our Watershed Conference’ for the Tallapoosa River Basin, which functioned as an annual forum for information exchange and stakeholder networking,
• actively participated in the Federal Regulatory Energy Commission (FERC) relicensing process, advocating for environmentally sound management of Lake Martin and the Tallapoosa River over the coming decades,
• advocated and defended water rights in interstate disputes known as ‘Water Wars’, helping to ensure that water quality and water quantity in the Tallapoosa River Basin are preserved, and,
• established an environmental education program at the Radney Elementary School in Alexander City, linking local experts (AWW-certified water monitors) and AU scientists to the science curriculum of the school’s gifted program beginning in 2010, which resulted in Ms. Laurie Barrett’s gifted class winning the 2012 Environmental Education Association of Alabama’s BEEP Award (Best Environmental Education Program).

And in December 2010, Dick participated in the signing ceremony of Executive Order 52 by then-Governor Riley establishing the Treasured Alabama Lake (TAL) designation for lakes in Alabama. Dick had championed official recognition and protection for Lake Martin over the previous six years through a series of letters, meetings and discussions with ADEM and others that culminated in the establishment of this entirely new official designation, TAL, for reservoirs with outstanding water quality and recreational significance.

This new designation will serve as a lasting legacy for the protection of Lake Martin, which was officially designated as the state’s first, and only, Treasured Alabama Lake in the spring of 2011. He considered this his crowning achievement knowing that Lake Martin will always be protected, and enjoyed by his children, grandchildren, and generations beyond.

Dick at the Lake Watch environmental education kiosk at Wind Creek State Park, made possible through

the vision of Dick and Mary Ann, and the generosity of the Bronson Family and the State Park.

Dick worked selflessly and tirelessly over the past several decades, educating children, participating in water quality studies, and advocating for clean water and a healthy environment, to the benefit of us all. There are few people in this state that have given so much of their time, talent and treasure for the protection of our environment. He will be greatly missed.

Below are a few of the articles recounting Dick's many acts of service and achievements in the Lake Martin community:

Water Watcher wins 2012 W. Kelly Mosley Environmental Award

Lake Watch of Lake Martin impacts statewide water policy

AWW Lifetime Achievement Award presented to Dick and Mary Ann Bronson

REMEMBERING OUR FOUNDER - tributes