Several picnic tables at Howard Memorial Park were vandalized and pitched over the park’s embankment on the first weekend of July, prompting a cleanup by the Jaffrey Democrats.
Jaffrey Democrats member Harry Young was at the park with his dog on July 7 when he noticed that all but one of the picnic tables in the park had been damaged, and four had been pushed over the steep embankment towards the pond below.
“The picnic tables were basically torn apart. The bolted parts they couldn’t get apart were thrown over the side,” Jaffrey Democrat member Bill Weibel. “There’s only one bench that’s been left intact.”
He was dismayed to see such a well-used and appreciated place vandalized.
“Every day you see people pulling in, sitting down with a sandwich, looking at the water,” he said.
Young contacted the police and alerted the Jaffrey Democrats, who opted to stage a cleanup in the park. So on Saturday, July 13, nine members gathered to beautify the area.
Initially, Weibel said the Democrats “tried to retrieve the picnic tales but the town said, ‘You’re out of your mind, don’t do it.’ The tables were very large and heavy … the bank is close to 90 degrees and ten, twelve feet high.”
Instead, the group picked up beer cans, bottles and cigarette butts as well as some fallen branches.
On Thursday, Town Manager Jon Frederick confirmed the town later removed and discarded the damaged picnic tables. He said there are no plans to replace the picnic tables.
“It’s quite aggravating actually,” he said, “that people think [vandalism] is a good use of their time. If there’s one good thing that came of this, it’s that the Jaffrey Democrats did a cleanup of the park.”
Police Chief Oswalt said that the vandalism is still under investigation.
“There are a few leads that we’re looking into, but we’re appealing to the public for any observations,” Oswalt said.
The town of Jaffrey acquired Howard Memorial Park in 2017.
“The park was donated to the town in the 1960s by the Howard family in memory of Charles and George Howard, who were both WWII veterans,” said Jaffrey Democrat Kathy Weibel.
The Jaffrey Democrats regularly ask members for ideas for local community service projects.
“We’re trying to do things that help the community,” Kathy Weibel said.
Last year the club helped a 94-year-old veteran with yard work and installed new steps and a railing at his house.
Bill Weibel added, “With all the politics going on, we like to show that we can do something other than just talk politics. We can go and do something good for the community.”