Natick Dedicates New Connor Heffler Park

NATICK, MA — Natick held a dedication ceremony on Sunday for a renovated park named for the son of two town employees who died of cancer in 2016.

Connor Heffler Park — formerly East Park — has undergone significant renovations in recent years. The $2.3 million renovation added new tennis, basketball and pickle ball courts, a new playground and revamped fields.

Heffler died in 2016 at age 11. He was the son of Natick police school resource officer Beth Heffler and public works electrician Steve Heffler. Connor Heffler was first diagnosed with a spinal tumor in 2015.

Beth Heffler spoke at Sunday's dedication ceremony, saying that she was happy her son's name and memory would live on at the park.

"You have to believe in something good to go after it, to go get it," she said. "Good things happen when you believe."

The new amenities at the park has been open for about a year after a soft opening last October. However, the park was closed in November 2019 after soil samples revealed PCBs at the southwest end of the park behind the Hertz car rental and Speedway gas station

The contaminated area is still fenced off, and the town plans to build a cap over the area to prevent the soil from being disturbed.