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Honored
Donald Steinbrick and his committee were honored by the local DAR for their work in restoring the Civil War monument on Grove Street, Putnam. At right is Melody Guillemette, regent of the Deborah Avery Putnam Chapter DAR. Courtesy photo.
By Ron P. Coderre
PUTNAM — A Putnam man was honored by the Daughters of the American Revolution recently at a ceremony held in Plainfield. Donald Steinbrick, a U.S. Air Force veteran, was presented the National Society of Daughters of the American Revolution Heritage Preservation Award for his work in restoring the 100-year-old Civil War Monument at the junction of Grove and Ring streets.
Steinbrick headed a local group of approximately a dozen individuals in bringing the monument back to its original status. The monument and statue were restored and refinished through a special cleaning process that revitalized them to their original color. The group also found two cement platforms that originally held cannon balls originally donated through metal collecting efforts during WWII. The pads were cleaned and raised and new cannon balls were secured replacing the originals that had been stolen.
In finalizing the monument location, Steinbrick and his committee planted new grass and planted trees where the originals had stood.
“The Deborah Avery Putnam Chapter DAR is proud to present Donald Steinbrick this Preservation Award in recognition of the work he and his committee did in restoring the monument area. The volunteer effort is part of preserving our nation’s history,” said Mary Brown.
An emotional Steinbrick was presented the award by Melody Guillemette, regent of the Deborah Avery Putnam Chapter DAR, before a small gathering. Guillemette said the monument was dedicated in 1912 after many years of fund-raising by the Putnam Women’s Relief Corps as a memorial to the local men and boys who fought in the Civil War. The rededication ceremony took place earlier this year prior to the annual Memorial Day parade.
“This award was totally unexpected. I lived in the area as a youngster and felt this was the appropriate thing to do. We had a great group working on this restoration project,” said Steinbrick.