HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013-01-09-TCC-minMinutes
Town Celebrations Committee
January 9, 2013
Training Room, Public Service Building, 201 Bedford Street
Members present
Suzie Barry, Chair; Bob Tracey, Co -Vice Chair; Linda Dixon, Sondra Lucente, Julie Miller, Wayne Miller,
Bill Mix,Henry Murphy, Charlie Price
Members not present
Dick Crogan, Mary Gillespie, Jo -Anne Granger, Paul Jenkins, Sandy Podgorski, Dave Taylor
Business
• The chair declared that a quorum waspresent
• The minutes of December 5, 2012 were approved with minor corrections.
• The chair reviewed the meeting schedule through May 2013. All meetings will be held in the
Training Room of the Public Service Building.
• Ryan Lennon, Veterans Services Officer, and Sam Doran from the LTC John W. Hudson Club
attended as guests.
• With the resignation of Jim Shaw from the main committee, Suzie will recommend to the
Selectmen that Julie Miller be moved from the subcommittee to fill this vacancy.
Memorial Day 2013
Sam Doran reported that he and Ryan Lennon have locatedthe unmarked graves of five Civil
War veterans in Munroe Cemetery and are working with the Veterans Administration to have a
proper headstone erected at each gravesite. They have followed a rigorous application process
that included tracking down descendants of the five service members.
The service members are: Pvt. Moses E. Colby; Pvt. Samuel Davis; Corp. Charles M. Parker
(great - grandson of Minuteman Captain John Parker); Pvt. George E. Pratt; and Landsman Cyrus
S. Capelle. At this point, the VA has provided headstones for Pvt. Davis, Pvt. Pratt and Corp.
Parker. The remaining two are still in process.
Sam and Ryan sought and received the Committee's approval to incorporate some form of
appropriate recognition of these veterans on Memorial Day while the parade is in Munroe
Cemetery.
Patriots Day
Schedule and Logistics
The weekend schedule, as laid out by Suzie Barry at a recent stakeholders meeting, is:
Saturday, April 13
Battle Road Events
Tower Park
Sunday, April 14
a.m. Church Services
2:00 p.m. 300 Anniversary /Town Parade
10:30 p.m. Paul Revere's Ride
Monday, April 15
a.m. Reenactment
Sunrise Youth Parade All at usual time
Ceremony on the Battle Green
10:00 Road Race
DAR Wreath Laying
11:00 USS Lexington Observance
2:00 Old Guard Ceremonies on the Battle Green. Units include
Fife and Drum
Commander in Chief's Guard Fire Demonstration
Army Drill Team
• The travel cost of $3,000 for the Army Drill team must be raised by private donation.
• The drill team normally attracts a crowd of 2,000. They will be unable to perform outdoors if the
temperature falls below 50 degrees. Cary Hall is available as a backup but the stage extension
will have to be dismantled from an earlier Symphony performance.
• Grace Chapel will not use the high school parking lot on Sunday.
• The Londonderry High School contingent may need their own special parking area.
• A campaign is underway to make sure that the residents of East Lexington are aware and
prepared for the parade to be held on Sunday vs. Monday. Measures include sending out a
special insert in the April tax bill and meeting with the East Lexington Residents Association.
Challenges
• Parade Ambassadors: We need to start getting the word out in February. Signups will again be
on line. We need extra volunteers this year — four at the East Lexington Fire Station and four at
the end of the parade.
• Parade Announcer: This year the announcing function will be consolidated at the reviewing
stand. Sue Rockwell will not be availableas she will be marching in the parade. The committee
considered a number of local candidates, as well as the possibility of hiring a well -known media
personality, especially one with a Lexington connection. The announcer should be joined by one
or two "color" persons.
• Traffic jam at end of parade: we discussed a tentative plan to line up buses around Hastings
Park on Lincoln Street, Mass. Ave, and Hastings Road so marching units could walk directly to
buses and depart, helping to avoid the inevitable traffic jam at the intersection of Mass. Ave and
Worthen Roads.
• Water: Perhaps a water supplier would be willing to set up and staff a water station at the end of
the parade in the pool parking lot.
• Fundraising/Sponsors: the Committee now has 100% responsibility for soliciting sponsors for
the parade. A plan needs to be developed and implemented.
Applications
• Ed Dooks of the Seashore Trolley Museum in Kennebunkport, Maine would like to bring a
vintage bus from the 1940's -50's to the parade. His museum is also restoring Car 41, a trolley
with a Lexington history. Ed is working with Sam Doran on a photo display for the CVS store
windows. Ed asked the Committee forapproval to mount a billboard on the side of the bus
asking for donations to restore Car 41. After discussion, the group requested that Ed first show
them a mock -up of the billboard.
• The Committee accepted the following units at the same fee as the 2012 parade:
Worcester Fire Brigade Honor Guard and Pipe Band
His Majesty's 10 Regiment of Foot
Youville Place (van)
DAR Lexington Chapter (4 -5 vehicles)
Veterans of Foreign Wars (4 -5 vehicles)
King's Own 4 11, Regiment of Foot
• A new group, the Friends of the Lexington Bikeways, a group of 15 -20 on the Conservation
Commission Truck, was accepted at no fee.
Grand Marshal
Bill Mix and Sam Doran presented a list of 40 names of the First Families in Lexington. Of this
original group, ten of their descendants currently live in New England, several in Lexington.
They proposed to invite these descendants to serve as Parade Grand Marshals. This item will
be placed on the agenda at the next meeting.
The meeting adjourned at 9:05 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Linda Dixon, Co- Secretary