Saturday’s news that vandals had caused more than $10,000 in damages to the Winter Wonderland of Lights displays in Central Park was heartbreaking.
When Managing Editor Mark Maynard called to tell me the news and discuss coverage of the story for Sunday’s edition, I kept thinking: Who would do such a thing and why would they do it?
Unfortunately, we still don’t have answers to those questions but we do know the effect of their acts — the community has come together to condemn them and to attempt to protect the beloved holiday tradition from future acts of vandalism.
Since last week I have found comfort and great pride in the resilience of organizers and the determination and outpouring of local residents who have filled my voice mail and e-mail boxes with their denunciations of the offenders and generous offers to be a part of a solution.
I know the organizers of Winter Wonderland of Lights have had similar experiences. So many individuals have such wonderful personal connections to the displays and felt such real pain that they were damaged that they felt compelled to express it.
While I don’t have memories of seeing the lights as a child, my co-workers do, and since moving to Ashland, I’ve enjoyed the displays each year. I have also had the opportunity to interview dozens of individuals about what the lights mean to them and the stories are always touching.
Most recently I’ve been touched by the stories about moving forward and making sense of such a senseless act.
Even while I interviewed Winter Wonderland chairman Marion Russell about the damage on Saturday night, he was setting up another light display that had not yet been lit this holiday season. Marion donates thousands of hours of his time to the event each year but refused to allow the act to discourage him. Even while discovering more damage he was adding to the display.
A couple days later, I called Marion to ask if they’d come up with any new leads on the vandals or planned to implement any new security measures. I also told him about the individuals who had called volunteering to patrol the park overnight and passed along some of the sentiment of readers.
Marion told me he’d been receiving the same calls from young and old alike — everyone he’d talked to wanted to do something to make sure the festival continued uninterrupted through the New Year.
He also told me that a group of young Boy Scouts had also volunteered to help temporarily repair the ice castle with packaging tape.
The response from residents has been heartwarming, at least for me.
The incident has illustrated what I have come to love about my new home: The people.
Never in my life have I witnessed the determination, resilience and resourcefulness individuals here show every day. They refuse to have their spirits trampled by bad circumstances and rise to every challenge presented to them and overcome them often with very few resources.
The fact that so many have responded with such passion and so little apathy, makes me confident the vandals will be caught and if not, will at least be heavy with guilt for being a modern day Scrooge to the community.
CARRIE STAMBAUGH can be reached at (606) 326-2653 or at cstambaugh@dailyindependent.com.
