William J Bresnahan Scouting and Community Center Inc

William J. Bresnahan  Scouting and Community Center in Ashburnham Massachusetts

Goal:  To open the William J. Bresnahan Scouting and Community Center on November 11, 2018

We have started this Go Fund Me account with a goal $196,500 to complete the beautiful and needed Scouting and Community Center in the memory of Marine PFC William J. Bresnahan. He was a lifelong citizen of our community and was killed in Vietnam in May of 1967.  The project was started more than 15 years ago and has proceeded without taxpayer dollars.  The project has been funded thus far by local donations and local fund raising events.  Many bottles and cans have been collected, yard sales, boot drives, and so many other events resulting in a beautiful building and property that is about 90 percent complete.  In addition many hours of labor by members of the Board of Directors and volunteers.  We are in the final and expensive push to get an occupancy permit and begin operating to serve the community. We need among other things handicap ramps, landscaping, paving, and other expensive items to complete this large project.

Recently, we received an additional incentive but it was without a doubt a message to get this project completed.  In March of this year we were contacted by Randy Debes from Arizona who said that he would like to return a “dog tag” of William J. Bresnahan to the surviving family.  He found us on our web site bresnahancenter.org .   At first we thought this was a cruel hoax until further investigation showed it to be valid.  A friend of Randy’s, Linda Gayles, was visiting countries in Southeast Asia.  While in a museum in Saigon (Ho Chi Min City), she came across some memorabilia items of American soldiers.  She asked if she could look closely at the dog tags on display.  One of them just felt “right” to her and she purchased it.  Upon returning home to Arizona she asked Randy to try to locate the surviving family.  Here it is 51 years later and the dog tag is returned to Ashburnham.  Billy’s parents were so distraught after the news of his death that they never questioned the missing dog tags and we will never know why and how they were separated from him.

Please help us to complete this honorable and very appropriate project in his memory.  Billy was an Eagle Scout, volunteer firefighter, high school athlete, and a part of the fabric of our small town.  His funeral was 1 year to the day from his high school graduation.

The missing and now returned tag. Missing since May 27th 1967 and returned 51 years later.

Official Marine Corp picture of PFC William J. Bresnahan
 

What a beautiful building. Waiting on the finishing touches on the solarium entranceway. We need a low handicap ramp for this entrance plus final landscaping and paving.

This photo shows where the handicap ramp for the second floor will be needed. Also note the major excavating needed for entrance, parking, and access driveway. Paving also needed.

Front of building with construction materials. Major excavating and tree clearing yet to be done on right side.

Boy Scout and Girl Scout meeting room is completed.




Ashburnham Troop 18 Eagle Scout shield. William J. Bresnahan is third from bottom on right side.



Marine Corp insignia with Billy's significant information. It is hand made by a local craftsman and will be displayed in the Center.