Sign of the Times/editorial

By Nancy Doniger
Easton Courier
November 18, 2012

http://www.acorn-online.com/joomla15/eastoncourier/news/localnews/133736-sign-of-the-timeseditorial.html

"Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot

Nothing is going to get better, it's not."

— The Lorax, by Dr. Seuss

Elizabeth Wenzel cited the quote from the beloved children's author when she presented a petition with 736 signatures to the Parks and Recreation Commission at the Nov. 8 special meeting on renaming Toth Memorial Park. She presented a piece of pressure-treated wood to make the point that the current sign "is not serving the community."

After hearing comments on both sides of the emotionally charged issue — the majority in favor of the name change — the commission voted unanimously to change it. The Toth Park sign came down the next day, replaced by what appeared to be the same piece of wood that Ms. Wenzel supplied.

The issue has divided the community, and it's time to move on and devote its time and attention to parks and recreation, the commission said, acknowledging it had been a wrenching decision.

More than a half-dozen people have made accusations of child molestation against Stephen "Skipper" Toth, but the accusations didn't surface until after Mr. Toth died and after Toth Park was renamed in his honor in 1985. It had originally been called Easton Park and Swimming Area.

Michael Powel led the charge to rename the park in 2004 when he accused Mr. Toth of molesting him on multiple occasions in the 1960s and 1970s. Mr. Powel died of a brain tumor in 2008. Another man also claimed to have been sexually assaulted as a boy, and several others claimed he attempted to molest them or witnessed attempts on other boys.

The Board of Selectmen and Parks and Recreation Commission held a closed-door meeting in 2004 and decided against renaming the park but left the door open should new information emerge.

Supporters of Mr. Toth aired strong feelings at the time that he had devoted his life to Easton and its children. They did not back down then or now in their defense of him; they did not and do not believe he could have done the things he was accused of doing.

Resident David Antonez revived the park name issue in July when he visited Toth Park on the Internet and confronted numerous accusations against Mr. Toth. Ted Alexander of Vermont, one of the alleged victims who had spoken to the town agencies behind closed doors in 2004, decided to go public and told his story to the Courier in late July.

The Parks and Recreation Commission sought the advice of the Board of Selectmen about how to proceed, but the selectmen were not able to reach a consensus on whether to seek counsel from a mental health professional or simply rename the park in light of the growing pressure to do so.

The selectmen referred the issue back to the Parks and Recreation Commission, which set up an email address to collect comments and information about renaming the park. The comission received 33 emails, a handful of which advocated keeping it as is, before the special meeting, attended by about 60 people, where more people spoke out.

Speakers in favor of renaming the park said their intention was not to prove Mr. Toth's guilt or innocence but rather that keeping the name wasn't the message they wanted to give to the children.

"It's a new day," Ms. Wenzel said about the decision. "It's all about timing."

She said the new information the commission was seeking is greater awareness of the issue of pedophilia and more receptivity to listen to people who step forward to air abuse.

Many people over many years have contributed to this new day: Mr. Powel, Mr. Alexander and the other witnesses; attorney Helen McGonigle of Brookfield, Mr. Powel's intrepid lawyer, who represented him in his successful lawsuits against several abuses and never gave up on his mission to change Toth Park's name; former Courier editors who covered the issue in 2004 and forward; friends and supporters of Mr. Powel, who kept his blog and message alive; the grassroots group including Mr. Antonez and Ms. Wenzel who have worked to get the name changed since July; the commission and selectmen who agreed to take another look and this divisive issue; and all those who commented, either for or against the change.

Ms. Wenzel said she hopes the community will come together and celebrate the park's new name once the commission chooses one.

So do we at the Courier. A lot of people cared an "awful lot," in the words of Dr. Seuss, and now things can "get better" for Easton's children now and for generations to come.