By MARK SARDELLA
WAKEFIELD — July 4, 2015 will always be remembered as the day that Wakefield’s grand Independence Day Parade (WIDC) returned after an absence of two years. But the West Side Social Club’s continuous contribution to the all-day festivities cannot be overlooked, and for that reason, the Board of Selectmen invited both groups to its meeting this week for some well-deserved plaudits.
Patrick Sullivan, chairman of the Wakefield Independence Day Committee and Carol Hubbard of the West Side Social Club’s Fourth of July Committee appeared before the board Monday night.
Chairman Ann Santos thanked Sullivan, Hubbard and their respective committees for the parade put on by the WIDC and for the WSSC-sponsored morning children’s events, evening fireworks and pre-fireworks musical program on the Common.
Santos said that she had heard “nothing but great comments,” about the day’s events.
Selectman Patrick Glynn said that he was “overwhelmed” by the parade and congratulated both groups on running “very efficient operations” in providing the town-wide celebration.
Selectman Phyllis Hull also expressed her gratitude.
“Everybody knows how much I wanted that parade to come back,” said Hull, who marched in the parade along with other board members. “I was so proud to walk those two miles, in the rain, in that parade. There isn’t anyone that I’ve talked to who doesn’t think that that was the best thing that’s happened to this town in years.”
Hull especially commended Sullivan and the WIDC for bringing the parade back.
Selectman Paul DiNocco thanked both the Independence Day Committee and the West Side Social Club “for a job well-done this year.” He recognized the tremendous amount of work that went into the effort.
Selectman Brian Falvey said that he “found the parade to be a point of civic pride for the town of Wakefield. Like our Lake, it’s something that differentiates us from other communities.”
He called the parade’s absence for the last two years “a real shame,” adding that he didn’t have high hopes that it could be so successfully resurrected so soon.
“Whether you know it or not, it’s a big deal to the town,” Falvey said of the parade.”
Selectman Betsy Sheeran, who for the past seven parades has served as the reviewing stand announcer, said that this year’s parade “went like clockwork.”
Sheeran also commended members of the old Wakefield Independence day Committee who came back to help the new committee with the logistics.
“We couldn’t have done it without them,” Sullivan said. He added that the parade committee was meeting to discuss how to make the parade even better next year. He also congratulated the West Side Social Club for its all-day events, “keeping everybody entertained outside of the two hours of the parade.”
Town Administrator Stephen P. Maio also thanked Sullivan and Hubbard. He noted that there would be a meeting next week including various town department heads to discuss the day’s events and ways that things might be improved.
Maio estimated that close to 70,000 people were on hand by the time the evening events rolled around.
Restoring the Soldiers and Sailors Monument
The granite Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument, which towers over Veterans Memorial Common, is in need of repair and Wakefield Veterans Services Officer Alicia Reddin has been exploring what it would take to get the job done.
Reddin said that an estimate of $556,000 for the cost of restoring the monument had been received from a Vermont granite firm.
She requested that the selectmen commission a committee to investigate the viability of the restoration project and to also look at restoring other veterans’ monuments on the Common, such as the Korean and Vietnam War memorials.
Reddin stressed the importance to addressing the restoration of the crumbling Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument soon, before it turns into a $2 million repair job. She said that the firm providing the estimate recommended removing the monument in sections and performing the restoration at the company’s headquarters in Vermont.
She noted that the Vermont company was one of only two companies in the United States equipped to do the job. The other company is on the west coast.
The selectmen agreed to advertise for applicants to serve on a committee to study the restoring the monuments on Veterans Memorial Common, beginning with the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument.
