Barbara J. Erickson, the president and CEO of the Trustees of Reservations, which manages 14 properties in Berkshire County, died Jan. 15 after a four-year battle with a rare form of appendix cancer. She was 42.
Originally from Wyoming, Erickson led the countryâs oldest land trust since 2012. She was the organizationâs fourth president, and first woman, to lead the nonprofit since its founding in 1891.
Erickson, who lived in Newton and Chatham, did not have a direct connection to the Berkshires. But those who knew her locally said she was passionate about her job and helped improve the properties that the Trustees managed in Berkshire County, particularly Naumkeag in Stockbridge.