Conway Remembers Former Civic Servant

CONWAY — Town officials expressed shock and sadness Monday upon hearing that the man who died in a car crash Saturday in the town of Florida was former Selectman Rick Bean.

Bean, 65, died Saturday morning when his car crashed into a tractor-trailer on Route 2. The crash occurred at about 7:30, according to the Berkshire County District Attorney’s Office.

State troopers assigned to the Cheshire barracks and state police detectives assigned to the District Attorney’s Office investigated the crash, with assistance from troopers assigned to the accident reconstruction unit and crime scene services.

According to reporting by the Berkshire Eagle, Bean was pronounced dead at the scene after the 2009 Honda Fit he was driving struck the trailer near Brown’s Garage at 481 Mohawk Trail, Route 2. According to the DA’s office, Bean was the only occupant of the car.

Bean served two terms on the Selectboard and as the town’s emergency management director until earlier this year, and was the chairman of the Energy Committee. He was also heavily involved in the town’s effort to build a new municipal Highway Department garage, organizing public meetings and at times sitting in Town Hall and offering his time to residents who had questions about the project.

“On behalf of all those who serve Conway, the Board of Selectmen offers its deepest condolences to Rick’s family and friends,” wrote Selectboard Chairman John O’Rourke. “Rick was a very energetic, valuable and involved member of the Conway community. As a selectman, he took a detailed interest in all town projects and the led efforts to review Conway’s special accounts, which resulted in cleaner financial statements and more money in the town’s general fund.”

Bean was instrumental in the Energy Committee’s effort to have the town designated as a Green Community, which netted the town about $140,000 for energy-related projects including upgrading of the lighting in town buildings and insulating the Town Hall, and served on the ad-hoc Pipeline Task Force in his capacity as emergency management director.

“Rick was always ready to lend a hand to work for the best interests of our residents and made many major contributions for the betterment of Conway,” O’Rourke wrote. “We will miss Rick’s positive energy, his humor, and his dedication.”