Bandstand roof, Fort Drum monument dedications planned at Thompson Park
On Saturday, the new roof on the historic bandstand will be dedicated to former Mayor T. Urling and Mabel Walker, who left a legacy of philanthropy in the city before they died.
On June 14, a series of events will be held to rededicate the 10th Mountain Division monument for the bronze plaque that was stolen last year.
The roof project was one of the final initiatives that Mayor Walker undertook before he died in 2023 at age 97. He also played a key role in the planting of many trees in the park over the years. Mabel Walker died in 2020 at the age of 90.
The unveiling of the Thompson Park bandstand roof had to wait until this spring after the project was delayed when bids came in to too high and work was held up until it was rebid.
The ribbon-cutting will be held at 12:45 p.m. and will honor the Walker family, said Brian Ashley, who played a major role in spearheading the project three years ago.
Ashley was among a group of park enthusiasts who raised about $200,000 for the project.
"It's very important for the park and what it means for the Walker family," Ashley said.
In 2022, a concert by a local big band, the Arrhythmias, was scheduled at the stone bandstand, but it was canceled because of rain. That pushed the group to get going on the project to cover the bandstand.
As was the groups goal, the Arrhythmias will perform during this Saturday's unveiling. Ashley is convinced that it will be the first of many concerts that will be held under the new roof for years to come.
But, just in case it rains, the unveiling will be held on June 14, the same day people will gather for the rededication of the monument.
Last August, someone removed one of the four plaques on the monument and stole it. No one has been charged in the theft.
The city, which owns the monument, is hosting the rededication at 9 a.m. that Saturday.
Sculptor Susan Grant Raymond — the Boulder, Colorado-based artist who designed the monument devoted to the 10th Mountain Division and its soldiers — has recreated the plaque from the mold that she used to create the monument eight years ago.
The community and Fort Drum soldiers were in disbelief when the several-hundred-pound plaque turned up missing.
They couldn't understand why someone would steal the bronze relief, which was about 4 1/2 to 5 feet long and 2 1/2 feet wide in size. The section that was stolen was the Global War on Terror side, which honors the history from 2001 until present day. It commemorates the time period when 10th Mountain soldiers were in Iraq.
The North Country Honors the Mountain Committee designed the monument and gave instruction to Grant Raymond, who has a history with the 10th Mountain Division.
The monument has become a symbol for the soldiers of the 10th Mountain Division, both past and present.
The monument event also will commemorate the U.S. Army's 250th birthday. After the ceremony, the park also will host the YMCA Healthy Kids Day at 10 a.m.
The Fort Drum Army Band will perform, and there will be birthday cake cutting, Army history and displays, a bounce house, ninja course, face painting and much more.
"We wanted to do something fun for the kids," said Jim Scordo, the city's Parks and Recreation Department program director.
In past years, the YMCA healthy Kids Day was held at the Alex T. Duffy Fairgrounds.
In other park news, the City Council on Monday gave permission to create a "Peace Pole" in the park. The Watertown Noon Rotary Club approached the city with a proposal to place the Peace Pole in a grassy area near the Rotary Pavilion in Thompson Park.
The Rotary built the picnic pavilion, and the nearby exercise and fitness trail several years ago and have unofficially adopted this section of Thompson Park.
The International Peace Pole Project is a movement that started in Japan in 1955 that involves the installation of a small pole that carries the message "May Peace Prevail On Earth."
The message is inscribed on the pole in several different languages. Rotary Clubs across the nation have taken up this movement and have worked to install peace poles throughout the country.
The exact design of the Peace Pole has not been finalized. The Friends of Thompson Park, a group of park enthusiasts, have endorsed the project.
The Peace Pole will join a nearby memorial that was unveiled last year that honors those who lost their lives during the COVID-19 pandemic.
On Monday night, the City Council approved a resolution to officially accept the donation of the COVID memorial.
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