LEROYPENNYSAVER&NEWS - JULY 17, 2016
Here I Stand
byLynneBelluscio
LeRoy’s LadyLiberty has been
restored to her place on the creek
bank. She stands on a new plinth,
set within the symbolic original
eleven point star. The new land-
scape gives her the prominence
that shedeserves. Onceagain this
community has demonstrated that
if it chooses, it can do wonderful
things. It isnotwithoutgreateffort.
It is not without generosity. It is
not without commitment. It is not
withoutknowledgeof thepast.All
these thingshave tobe inalignment
inorderfor the job tobesuccessful.
This project was a long time in
themaking. Several years ago, a
woman came to town andwanted
toshowcase theStatueofLiberty in
aphotopresentation for theOatka
Festival. She admonished us for
not taking care of the statue, but
the timewasnot right. Itwouldbe
severalyears later, thatwhiledoing
awalking tour for thesecondgrade
classes, that they askedwhat hap-
pened to the face of LadyLiberty
and itbecameveryevident that the
time had come forwork tobegin.
The list is long - - as it should
be - - of people who have made
this project successful. The list
is not in any particular order and
for those of you who I miss, it is
not intentional nor is it to lessen
the importance of what you have
done tohelp.
Toall thepeoplewho reached in
their pockets to donatemoney - -
the alumni classes, the Chamber
of Commerce, The Loyal Order
ofMoose, the second graders, the
descendantsof immigrants, - - the
list is long - - none of this would
have been possible without the
donations.
ToHeidiMiksch from theNew
York State Historic Preserva-
tion Office at Peebles Island who
steeredme in the right direction to
chose a sculpture conservationist
that was right for the job and for
Thomas Podnar ofMcKayLodge
FineArtsConservationLaboratory
inOberlin,Ohio, for takingcareof
LadyLiberty.
To Randy Vink and Richard
Flanaganand theskilledworkmen
atOrcon IndustriesonLakeRoad,
who designed and built the cush-
ioned container for transporting
LadyLiberty toOhio andback.
To the Board of the Historical
Society who agreed to take this
projecton,notknowing ifwecould
raiseenoughmoney,andwhowere
willing to takeon thecrazynot-for-
profit financial reports that were
necessary tomake thiswork.
To Bobby Lathan who wasn’t
fazedwhenIaskedhim tounfasten
Lady Liberty from the plinth - -
thenpull theoldplinth - -thenpour
anewfoundation-- thenarrange to
put the new plinth in place - - and
then “danced” with Lady Liberty
togetherbackonherplinth - -and
who never once laughed at me
when I insisted that the word for
the cement thingwas a “plinth”.
To RobMcQuillen who put to-
gether measured drawings of the
plinthsowecouldsend the jobout
for quotes.And toLindsayYoder,
fromBeroAssociates inRochester,
who volunteered to help with the
architectural needs for the design
of the plinth.
To Andrew Lathan for having
the right machinery for the job!!
We needed some pretty heavy
They say it takes a village.
Guess you could sayLeRoy is the
right village.
equipment toplace the3 tonplinth
and to liftLadyLiberty intoplace.
Nomean feat for the faintofheart.
Itwas aballet – although I’m sure
thatAndrewwouldnot call it that.
ToSouthsideConcrete inBuffa-
lo, who put upwithmy incessant
phonecallsabouthaving theplinth
done in time for the dedication - -
andwhodid a remarkable job and
came in at the lowest bid.
To Scott Heatherman and Joe
Jaszko of Bubba’s Landscaping
whose craftsmanship and detail
produced a remarkable hardscape
around Lady Liberty and to John
Morrellwhobought into the proj-
ectandmadesure itwasdone right
- -even insistingon lightsand rose
bushes--youwererightJohn, they
are justwhatwas needed.
To Humphrey Electric and Bill
Humphrey for making sure the
electric installation was done
correctly and as they said “We’ll
eat the bill.”
ToCherylWilliamsat the
LeRoy
Pennysaver
forputtingupwithme
todesign the logo for theStrength-
en theArmT-shirt andbanner.
And one more thank you to
Pully’sFarmMarket for thepots
of petunias.
To all the folks who agreed to
participate in the dedication on
Sunday - - your enthusiasm is
greatly appreciated. To Michelle
Panepento and her daughterAnna
for agreeing to once again be our
LadyLiberty.
If you could see ourhistory thoughmy eyes
Then you’dknowhow love can survive
Through thehate and thewars
So for the cause, here I stand
I hold this torch for all to see
And shed the light onwhat it reallymeans
to love and to share
To showwe care
Sohere I stand
Giveme your tired, yourpoor, your
huddledmasses
Yearning tobreathe free
Allwalks of life arewelcome to takemyhand
Here I stand for love and theunity of our land
Sohere I stand
Lyrics by
MaxSmith
