Volunteers repaint Athol gazebo for veterans memorial service

Al Benjamin plays “Taps” at the 2023 We Remember ceremony.

Al Benjamin plays “Taps” at the 2023 We Remember ceremony. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

Retired Athol Police Officer and veteran Kevin Heath and Athol Congregational Church member Tom O'Connor prepare for the folding of the flag at the 2023 We Remember event.

Retired Athol Police Officer and veteran Kevin Heath and Athol Congregational Church member Tom O'Connor prepare for the folding of the flag at the 2023 We Remember event. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

Nancy Mooney of the Disabled American Veterans Auxiliary #33 speaks to those in attendance at the 2023 memorial service.

Nancy Mooney of the Disabled American Veterans Auxiliary #33 speaks to those in attendance at the 2023 memorial service. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

Volunteers (from left) Al Benjamin, Mason Young and Kevin Heath hang American flags from the bandstand on Athol's Uptown Common in preparation for the We Remember veterans memorial, to be held on May 26.

Volunteers (from left) Al Benjamin, Mason Young and Kevin Heath hang American flags from the bandstand on Athol's Uptown Common in preparation for the We Remember veterans memorial, to be held on May 26. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

By GREG VINE

For the Athol Daily News

Published: 05-05-2024 5:01 PM

ATHOL – Several volunteers recently helped with a new paint job for the bandstand on the Uptown Common, in time for the annual “We Remember” ceremony.

The gazebo was painted and decorated in preparation for the annual Athol Congregational Church event, which honors those Athol veterans who gave their lives in service to their country.

Church member Bonnie Benjamin said the memorial has “been going on since 2018, I believe. It was started because the church wanted to do something more to support the veterans in our area. So, we established the ‘We Remember Project,’ which is observed each May. We use the bandstand for a display to honor those service members who have died, particularly.”

Benjamin said that when the event was initiated in 2018, the church simply placed a display at the bandstand. However, during the COVID pandemic, her husband Al decided the structure could use a fresh coat of paint.

“It was an ‘Al project,’ a private project,” she said. “He used leftover paint, whatever he could find. The painting itself wasn’t a church project.”

Benjamin said she believes the idea for the event came from Rev. Beverly Prestwood-Taylor, the former pastor of the church.

“I’m sure she came up with it, because veterans are still very close to her heart,” Benjamin said.

This year’s display has been established, at the gazebo she said.

Article continues after...

Yesterday's Most Read Articles

$338K fraud drains town coffers in Orange
Five Points Project, trash disposal on Athol Town Meeting warrant
Orange Selectboard to review proposal to de-fund town libraries
Proposal calls for a 70-80-room hotel near North Quabbin Commons in Athol
Are Massachusetts politics on immigration changing? Strategists, activists weigh in.
Assessment of Phillips Free Public Library does not address “problematic” addition

A memorial service, Benjamin explained, will take place on Sunday, May 26, beginning at 11:15 a.m. The memorial will include the playing of “Taps,” the folding of the American flag, and the reading of the names of Athol area veterans who gave their lives in service to the nation. A bell will be tolled for each name read.

Money collected during the month of May is used to fund a free breakfast for veterans and their family members every November. The event is coordinated by the North Quabbin Veterans Outreach, which is affiliated with the church. This year, the event falls on Nov. 9, two days prior to Veterans Day. Funds for the breakfast come from people who donate $5 in honor of veterans in their family. Donations can be dropped off at the church, 1225 Chestnut St., in Athol.

Greg Vine can be reached at gvineadn@gmail.com.