The weather was a little cooler than in recent days. The fog had not yet lifted to warn folks it was going to be a day of ultra-sunshine, but approximately 30 people gathered in New Boston Village Square Park Wednesday morning, for a special event. The park was renamed the James N. Warren, Jr. Village Square Memorial Park in honor of the man who served the village as mayor for 23 years.
“It was emotional,” New Boston Village Councilman Mike Payton said. “It was really emotional.”
The man who succeeded Warren as mayor, Junior Williams, read a proclamation and Warren’s sister, Opal Porter cut a ribbon over the new signage in the park, and several people spoke, including Scioto County Commissioner Mike Crabtree, and Steve Sturgill, Executive Director of Community Action of Scioto County.
Williams said the decision to hold the ceremony was made late last week and they quickly tried to spread the word. The dedication is the result of action taken recently by the New Boston Village Council who had wanted to honor Warren in some permanent way.
“I served my entire 15 1/2 years as a councilman under Mayor Warren,” Williams said. “He certainly preached togetherness. He always felt that to get things done, set politics aside and we all just had to work together to make things happen.”
The proclamation read in part – “Mayor Warren played an important role and partnered with Village Council and other leaders to help all communities succeed and provided outstanding leadership and direction fo the village staff and employees; and Mayor Warren recognized the importance of business and industry and took all necessary steps to listen and ensure that they had the very best opportunity to succeed and grow here in New Boston; and Mayor Jim Warren was an accomplished and well respected pillar of our community and dedicated his life to the best interests of our neighborhoods and families, including his own; and Mayor Warran was always loved, admired, and appreciated for the passionate way he handled challenging situations and the overall day to day operations of the village…”
Williams said Warren stressed looking out for each other and having support for each other as a way to accomplish things.
“The way he treated people in such a fair and friendly manner is why he was commonly known as ‘The People’s Mayor,’” Williams said.
Reach Frank Lewis at 740-353-3101, ext. 1928, or on Twitter @franklewis.