Janet Hardie Harvey, Irvine Nature Center administrator and advocate for Johnston Square, dies

Janet Hardie Harvey, a former Irvine Nature Center administrator who became an advocate for the Johnston Square neighborhood, died of cervical cancer Saturday at her home in the Woodbrook neighborhood of Towson. She was 66.

Born in Pittsburgh, she was the daughter of James H. Hardie, an attorney, and Frances Curtis, a librarian, author and historian. She was in Shady Side Academy’s first class of women and earned a degree at Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts.

She met her future husband, Dixon Harvey, through mutual friends at a social event in Baltimore in 1984. They married in 1985 in Watch Hill, Rhode Island.

In the early 1980s, she became an educator for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.

“She took kids on trips out of Annapolis and Smith Island and over all the tributary rivers of the Bay,” her husband said. “Janet thrived in the out-of-doors and was equally comfortable tending to her gardens as she was skiing black diamond runs. She was a dedicated plein-air artist and travel enthusiast.”

Ms. Harvey later became the Irvine Nature Center’s director of development in Stevenson.

After her retirement, she wanted to assist Baltimore City and toured neighborhood redevelopment projects.

As part of that experience, she met Regina Hammond, executive director of the Rebuild Johnston Square Neighborhood Association in Central Baltimore.

“The first thing I felt was that Janet was like an angel who entered my life,” Ms. Hammond said. “With her quiet spirit she worked magic in the neighborhood. She helped us raise so much money. And she was instrumental in bringing so many good things here — from our gardens to Johnston Square Elementary School. Our library used to be used as a storage room. She changed that and now we’ve been able to transform it into a really nice space.

“She was was huge part of the redevelopment of the neighborhood.”

Sean Closkey, president of Rebuild Metro, said: “Janet set the example for others to follow. She brought everything that Baltimore and Johnston Square needed. She was selfless, shared her network and her resources. She was wildly effective, and was so with grace and tact.

“Janet could walk into a room, smile and encourage other people,” Mr. Closkey said.

“Janet was a child of nature and … she was also a force of nature with her humility, kindness and gentleness,” said her friend and colleague Molly Hathaway. “With her conviction she joined company with the Johnston Square residents she met. They re-imagined and refurbished this part of our city. Her resolve helped to generate a vision and a roadmap for a better Baltimore.”

Ms. Harvey served on the board of directors and co-chaired the Johnston Square Stewardship Committee. She led an ongoing $10 million capital campaign for the neighborhood.

“Janet was the kind of person who led her extended family through life’s ups and downs with a kind heart, a gentle hand and a strong moral compass,” her husband said. “She showed us how to live and greeted every person and every moment with warmth, openness, curiosity and enthusiasm.”

A service will be held at 11 a.m. April 26 at the Church of the Redeemer at 5603 N. Charles St., where she was a member.

Survivors include her husband, Dixon Harvey; a son, Bobby Harvey, of Denver; a daughter, Annie Harvey, of Brooklyn, New York; three brothers, Andrew Hardie, of Pittsburgh, Michael Hardie, of Baltimore County, and Hiller Hardie of Pittsburgh; and four grandchildren.