Dexter has busy summer on tap

By Stuart Hedstrom
Staff Writer

DEXTER — Town Manager Shelley Watson provided updates on several happenings scheduled for the upcoming few months during a June 8 meeting of the town council. 

BDN file photo/Micky Bedell

THE MOVING WALL — Shirley B. Carter VFW Post 4298 of Dexter  is working to bring The Moving Wall to town next May, where the memorial inscribed with the names of more than 58,000 Americans who lost their lives during the Vietnam War would be on display for about a week at the Mount Pleasant Cemetery. Last month over 200 veterans escorted The Moving Wall to the Knox Museum in Thomaston, with many remaining to help install the memorial.

“I don’t want you to forget the anniversary celebration on the 17th,” Watson said in her report. On June 17 the community will host a special event from 2-4 p.m. at the town hall to mark the 200th anniversary of the incorporation of Dexter.

“That was the exact date the town was incorporated 200 years ago,” Watson said. She said resident Dave Pearson will be dressed in period costume to read the proclamation that established Dexter on June 17, 1816, with cake to follow in the dining area.

Watson said plans are underway for a Fourth of July parade, and organizers are encouraging participants to tie their floats into the 200-year milestone theme.

A hiring committee has met to review applicants to staff a summer camp being offered to SAD 46 students in grades 2-5. The program will be funded through a grant from the William and Joan Alfond Foundation. “We have chosen five wonderful applicants and three have been chosen as lifeguards,” Watson said.

The Plummer Foundation is underwriting a fifth counselor position.

“The Red Hot Festival is growing bigger every day,” Watson said about the inaugural event scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 13. She said there is still a great need for volunteers, about 100 are needed, and those willing to help out can do so in two-hour shifts.

“Everyone who volunteers gets a free T-shirt, so there’s an incentive there,” Watson said.

In other business, Watson reported that budget meetings are ongoing with very tough decisions and cuts being made to help maintain the current mill rate. The council’s final budget meeting was scheduled for June 13.

The council met with David Iverson, incoming commander of Shirley B. Carter VFW Post 4298, about plans to host The Moving Wall next year at the Mount Pleasant Cemetery on the Bryant Road. The wall is a half-sized replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. and, like its larger version, is inscribed with the names of more than 58,000 Americans who lost their lives during the Vietnam War.

Iverson said the plan is for The Moving Wall to arrive on May 10, 2017, be assembled by a crew of veterans and then be on display from May 11-17. “It’s here for a week, it’s open 24/7 and it’s guarded 24/7,” he said. “There’s a lot of activity but respectful activity. It’s not a carnival, it’s a memorial.”

Shuttles would be available to transport visitors from in-town Dexter up to the cemetery. Iverson said The Moving Wall was on display at the Knox Museum in Thomaston over Memorial Day and buses were used for transportation then.

Councilor Marcia Delaware said she recently was up at the open space at the Mount Pleasant Cemetery where The Moving Wall would be set up. “I think the field’s going to be a real nice place to have it,” she said. “That’s a beautiful site up there.”

“Thank you for offering that,” Council Alan Wintle said, as the council indicated its support of the effort.

Iverson said there is an approximate $6,500 cost to bring The Moving Wall to Dexter so the VFW will be fundraising and seeking sponsorships.