Shrewsbury Hearing Focuses On Honoring Dawn Shannon, Ray Stone

SHREWSBURY, MA — Residents urged town officials to find a way to honor longtime Recreation Department employee Dawn Shannon while preserving the historic name of the Ray Stone Post.

The Select Board heard public comment Tuesday on a proposal to name part of the building’s interior after Shannon. The Recreation Department now occupies the recently restored building at 835 Main St., which will remain named for World War I veteran Sgt. First Class Raymond Stone.

Board members received numerous emails, along with comments from residents who attended the hearing. Community members supported recognizing Shannon’s service while retaining the building’s association with Stone.

The proposal followed a request from Shannon’s family to name an interior portion of the building in her honor. The town held the hearing to gather public input, and it did not schedule a final decision for that night.

Shannon worked for the Shrewsbury Parks and Recreation Department from 1972 to 2002. During her 30-year career, she helped provide basketball, softball, social events, trips and programs for residents with special needs, including programs supporting the Special Olympics.

The Ray Stone Post dates to 1858 and originally served as a schoolhouse. It is Shrewsbury’s oldest publicly maintained building and later became a community center used by veterans’ groups, service organizations and Boy Scout troops.

The town reopened the building in February following renovations funded with $625,000 in federal American Rescue Plan Act money, $105,841 from a Green Communities grant and $250,000 from the town’s capital improvement plan. The restored facility includes Recreation Department offices and a 2,000-square-foot Great Room.

Under Shrewsbury’s municipal property naming policy, written and oral comments must become part of the public record and be considered before the Select Board votes on an official name.

See Also:

• Shrewsbury Opens First Fully Replaced Playground In 26 Years
• Shrewsbury Senior Center Records Nearly 20,000 Visits This Year