Veterans Take Issue With Newly Erected Sign At Lenola Baseball Fields In Moorestown

Moorestown, NJ -- American Legion Post 42 is taking issue with a sign dedicating a park in honor of a longtime Moorestown councilman.

Dave Schill appeared before council during its meeting on Nov. 14 and asked for a change to a sign that was erected last month at the Lenola Baseball Fields in honor of Walter T. Maahs.

"The sign is place between two fields, and two fields make a park," Schill said.

He argues that the park is named after Maahs, when it should follow suit with other parks in Moorestown and be named after a veteran who died in combat.

Gene Clark provided a letter from the American Legion in support of Schill’s argument.

Township Manager Scott Carew said the sign dedicated to Maahs is in front of one field at the Lenola Baseball Fields, but Schill says the sign should be moved and the park should be named after a serviceman.

"It's not uncommon to have a field named one thing, and have the park be named something else," Carew said.

Deputy Mayor Victoria Napolitano said the sign is unlikely to be moved because there were a lot of people who donated money to have it erected.

Schill wondered why the township would name a park after a politician, but Napolitano argued that Maahs was more than "just a politician."

“He fought in World War II, he was a Rotarian, he was a lifelong member of the Lenola Fire Company and he was the founder of the Lenola Emergency Squad,” Napolitano said.

Maahs died in 2011.

He was also the owner of Safecare Ambulance Service of Moorestown. He was on the Lenola Fire Company Board of Fire Commissioners from 1961 to 1979, serving as president from 1961 to 1979, as well as a member of the Knights of Columbus, Our Lady of Good Counsel Church.

He was also a member of town council from 1977-1996, including a stint as mayor from 1988-1996.
Schill said he didn’t know Maahs, naming the park after him “violates the spirit of what we’re doing.”

Jeff Young Memorial Park and Wesley Bishop Park are both named after servicemen killed in the line of duty, according to the Burlington County Times. Frank Fullerton Fields is named after a police sergeant who was killed in the line of duty in 1979, and Memorial Park honors servicemen who died in both World Wars, the Korean War and the Vietnam War.

However, resident John Logue pointed out during the meeting that Yancy Adams Park and Maple Dawson Park are not named after those who lost their life serving their country.

“The township didn’t put one penny into that sign. I know because I raised the funds,” Logue said. “They were all private funds. The sign is a fitting tribute to his service, and that’s why it was erected.”