By KENNEDY GRIFFIN

(Greenfield, MA) Ann Hamilton, former Franklin County Chamber of Commerce Executive Director of over 30 years, passed away on the morning of January 16th. She had been battling Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) for over seven years.

Hamilton was born in Newtonville, Massachusetts and grew up in Keene, New Hampshire. She attended Centenary Colle for Women after graduating high school in Keene. After getting married to her husband Robert DeWolfe Hamilton in 1962, she began her life in Old Deerfield.

She served the community of Franklin County in numerous roles over the years. Hamilton was the President of the Deerfield Women’s Club in 1966 and served as Tribune for almost twenty years at WGBY-PBS in Springfield. In 1967, she moved to Greenfield and joined the Greenfield Planning Board.

Hamilton became the first woman selectman for the then Town of Greenfield from 1980 to 1983 and worked with Go-Greenfield, known today as the Greenfield Business Association (GBA). She was an indispensable part of the formation of the I-91 Industrial Park.

One of her most notable roles was serving as the Executive Director of the Franklin County Chamber of Commerce for 32 years, from 1993 to 2016. During her time leading the Chamber, many community staple events were cultivated, including the Green River Balloon Festival and CiderDays. Today, both of these events attract thousands from across the country, and even the world, to Franklin County.

She traveled the world in various capacities representing the Mass Office of Travel and Tourism and the Franklin County Chamber of Commerce, among other things.

When she was honored for her service in the Chamber at Deerfield Academy’s dining commons, Hamilton said, “Franklin County is authentic. It has characteristics that are somewhat unique, but it’s subtle and I also believe that our growth and our future is really all about balance” and her advice for her successor was to “be a good listener, be somewhat assertive, get to know people and remind people that Franklin County is a wodnerful place to live and work and play.

Visiting hours will be Saturday, January 21 from 1:00pm to 3:00pm at the Smith-Kelleher Funeral Home, 87 Franklin St., Greenfield. A Celebration of Ann’s Life will be Saturday, February 11, at 2:00pm at the Second Congregational Church, Court Square, Greenfield.