HomeMy WebLinkAbout2026-02-05-MMC-min.docx
Monuments and Memorials Committee
Minutes of Meeting
February 5, 2026, By Zoom Teleconference
Attendance: Nick Wong, Chair; Avram Baskin, Glen Bassett, Linda Dixon, Leslie
Masson, Regina Sutton
Guests: Bill Poole
Absent: George Gamota, Liz Huttner
Business: Chair Nick Wong opened the meeting at 4:05, welcomed everyone, and
declared that a quorum was present.
Approval of Minutes of December 4, 2025
On motion duly made and seconded, the minutes of December 4, 2025 were approved
unanimously by roll call vote. Chair Nick also reviewed the status of several previous
meetings for which there were no minutes: October 2025, did not attain a quorum;
November 2025, meeting posting notice arrived past deadline; and January, 2026,
technical issues prevented holding the meeting.
Introducing Our Database: Which committees/organizations to target first?
Now that we are nearing the end of our project to identify appropriate monuments and
memorials and create a database, Nick sought comment on groups most likely to be
interested and best methods of approach. DPW will be our primary client for assistance
in monument cleanup, repair, and restoration.
Regina: We could just ask any tourist- involved group to put a link to our database on
their website. Avram: our database is not yet in a state for public consumption. He
suggests Director of Development Sandra Iyer, who oversees tourism in town, as an
interested colleague.
Glen suggested the committee send a note to all committees saying “we’ve been
working with DPW; now we have this great database; can you utilize? Could this help
you fulfill your mission? We are happy to share.” Nick added that for any queries, we
would tailor a specific response. Bill felt we should send an upbeat message to all
groups where we extol what we have and explain it in simple terms. Glen agreed to send
a draft message to all committee members for their feedback. We will review it at our
March meeting.
If we receive substantial interest in the database, it’s possible that the Town might
decide to invest more resources to serve multiple committees.
Finishing the Database
The database still needs some final touches. Nick, Linda, and Avram will identify those
new monuments we have uncovered and add their new stories to the database using
the submission form. We still need lots of photos. Nick will assign a few stories to each
committee member with a two-week completion deadline. Leslie asked that a new detail
about the Women’s Monument be added – they are now looking for an annual cleanup.
Letter From Wei Ding, STEAM Team Mentor
After a discussion with Wei Ding at our December 4 meeting on the STEAM Team’s
work on an upcoming projection mapping project, Secretary Linda received a letter from
Wei. She felt the committee was expressing reduced need for the team’s help and
asked whether the committee was seeking to sever the relationship. The group felt that
our multi-year relationship with STEAM was valuable and should be retained. Also, it
would be helpful to develop a list of useful projects that the STEAM Team could work
on. Nick will respond to Wei that we value our relationship.
The Committee voted to adjourn at 4:40 p.m. by roll call vote.
The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, March 5, 2026.
Respectfully submitted,
Linda Dixon, Secretary