Town Day begins a healing process
Published on September 19th, 2001
STONEHAM, MA - Town Day felt different this year.
The candles were left untouched from the spontaneous youth vigil of the night before. Families filled the Common, Central Street and the Town Hall grounds to eat, laugh and mourn with friends. A giant flag donated by a Stoneham resident hung from Town Hall as a symbol of both solemnity and celebration.
A moving ceremony remembering the lives lost less than a week earlier made Town Day 2001 unique, but after the prayers and songs, the fun began as it does every September.
“I’m so glad they decided to go on with Town Day,” said Cameron Bain at his bike path booth. “I didn’t feel like coming out. But I’m glad I did.”
Kimball Drive resident Maureen Houghton echoed Bain’s sentiment: “They made the right decision.”
Town Day Chairman Ralph Barile and Chamber of Commerce Director Sharon Iovanni made the call to hold Stoneham’s 18th annual Town Day as planned on Saturday, Sept. 15.
The terrorist attack on America on the morning of Sept. 11 shook the world. Fires are still burning in New York, and people are missing. Thousands are dead. But life must go on, and only together can Americans weather this ugliest of storms. Barile, a funeral director, knows how people feel in times of grief, and he knew what the town needed.
“It was a nice way for the community to bond and move forward,” Barile said.
Town Day 2001 had the feeling of a religious sacrament. Joy filled the air, but everybody was conscious of a deeper meaning, an underlying importance to the gathering of friends and families. Amidst dunk tanks and pie eating booths petitions passed through the crowd and donations were collected to honor and help the brave Americans — firefighters, police officers and our government leaders — who must deal firsthand with putting America back together and defending us.
In times of fear and chaos people look desperately for signs of hope. In a moving display of community spirit, the youth of Stoneham helped lead our corner of America back to normalcy, away from fear and back to pride and bravery. Two hundred students, mostly from Stoneham High, gathered at the Town Common Friday night. They lit candles, prayed, sang, shared their thoughts, and then proceeded to the Stoneham Fire Station and Police Station to shake the hands of the men dedicated to protecting us.
“I will never forget what they did,” said Firefighter Mike Flynn.
No one wanted credit for organizing the event, no organization, no club. The kids acted on their own from their hearts. And the melted candles they lit Friday remained on the Common as the heart at the center of Town Day.
The youth of Stoneham gave the community hope, and the wisdom of the elder (not old, just older — no letters please) Town Day organizers let everyone rally around this core of youthful hope to conquer the fear of last Tuesday and celebrate the proud spirit of Stoneham and America on a beautiful Saturday afternoon.
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