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Presentation
James Morton, president and CEO of the Greater Hartford YMCA, presents Patricia Morgan, left, a plaque in recognition of her $100,000 pledge to the Regional Community YMCA, while her son, John, and her grandchildren, Dawson and Samantha, look on. Courtesy photo.
PUTNAM --- A recent “Celebration of Giving” was held in honor of Patricia Morgan, trustee of the Beagary Charitable Trust of Brooklyn, which recently pledged $100,000 toward the construction of the new Regional Community YMCA in Putnam.
The Beagary Trust is dedicated to providing positive experiences for young people in northeastern Connecticut and made its pledge in memory of brothers Benjamin B. Morgan, a longtime teacher at Pomfret School, and John M. Morgan, a local businessman and historian. The Y’s Teen Center will bear the Morgan family name.
The “Celebration of Giving” saw members of the YMCA of Greater Hartford, the local Campaign Leadership Team, the Newell D. Hale Foundation and friends of the Morgan family gather alongside state and local elected officials inside J.D. Cooper’s Restaurant of Putnam. An honorary plaque was presented to Patricia Morgan.
Accompanying Morgan were her son, John, and his two children, Samantha and Dawson. Morgan presented the honorary plaque to her grandchildren, calling them, “The very teens that will be going to the Teen Center.”
Morgan also called on those in attendance to make sure that everyone in the Quiet Corner takes part in making the Regional Community YMCA a reality.
“I think the 10-town area can use such a facility,” she said. “Our dream is that area towns will avail themselves of the programs and facilities the YMCA will offer. The success of this effort will rely heavily on the support and usage by the people who call our region home.”
James Morton, president and CEO of the YMCA of Greater Hartford, praised the Beagary Charitable Trust for assisting Quiet Corner youth in addressing issues such as obesity, poverty and lack of contact with positive adult role models.
“There would not be a Teen Center in the Regional Community YMCA if it were not for the Beagary Charitable Trust,” Morton said.
The planned 40,000 to 45,000-square foot facility will cost approximately $13 million when completed. The Community Support portion of that total is $2.5 million, of which $1.7 million has been pledged. Thanks in part to a $3 million pledge from the Newell D. Hale Foundation and a $3.745 million grant from the State of Connecticut, the project has now realized a total of $8.445 million.
“We are so pleased with the progress and support that this project has received. We’re looking forward to the completion of our fund-raising efforts and the day that the Regional Community YMCA makes a splash in Northeastern Connecticut,” said General Campaign Chairpersons Dr. Garfield and Sylvia Danenhower.