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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE JASON SILVA, CHIEF OF STAFF
JUNE 15, 2010 978-745-9595, EXT. 5603
Portrait of Major Salem Benefactor Unveiled
SALEM, MA - Dr. Nile Albright and Mr. Dennis Spear, Trustees of the Norman H. Read Trust visited Salem on Monday. Since 1993 the trust has given more than $3 million to the Salem school system to fund numerous science education tools from science teachers' salaries to constructing new science laboratories. The trustees spent the day touring Salem schools with School Superintendent Dr. William Cameron and Assistant Superintendent Dr. Alyce Davis to witness the Trust's generosity first hand.
However, their first stop was Mayor Kimberley Driscoll's office to unveil a portrait of Norman Hatfield Read, benefactor of the Norman H. Read Trust. At the portrait dedication, Dr. Albright recalled his fond memories of first meeting Norman Read in 1955 on a climb up Mt. McKinley in Alaska and their continued friendship until Norman's death in 1992 at the age of 101. Mr. Read was a prominent geologist and mountaineer, which the artist, Lisa Sawlit, expertly captured in this portrait which now hangs in the Mayor's Office. The wording contained on the plaque below the painting reinforces the commitment that the Norman H. Read Trust will benefit the citizens of Salem to enhance science education in perpetuity.
Norman H. Read's portrait joins those of his great-grandfather John and his grandfather Charles Albert in Salem City Hall. The Read family has a long history in Salem, starting when John arrived in the early 1800's. Charles was the first benefactor to Salem when upon his death in 1869, he established the fund that supports the Read Fund Picnic. This picnic, now named, the Read Fund Science Fair and Family Picnic that includes free science exhibits with hands-on experiments will take place this Saturday at Salem Willows from 11am to 3pm. This long-standing event is eagerly looked forward to by all Salem's elementary students at the end of the school year.
Last year, the Read Trust generously launched September Salem Days, the highly successful program that provided free admission to the Museum of Science and the Omni Theater for all Salem residents during the entire month of September. The program will take place again this September, so watch for your admission tickets in the mail in late August and newspaper articles with more details about activities we are planning for this September.
Stop by the Museum of Science table at the Read Fund Science Fair and Family Picnic on Saturday, and you will be able to color whale pictures that will be displayed at the Museum during the Whales | Tohora exhibit, a New Zealand-based exhibit that brings the world of whales to life, which runs through September 14th.
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