Center renamed for man who 'redefined generosity'

"Wow," said Edgar May, following a standing ovation from a gathering of 150 friends who stopped by to salute May and witness the renaming of the Southern Vermont Health and Recreation Center to The Edgar May Health and Recreation Center.

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Center renamed for man who 'redefined generosity'

By Archie Mountain, Staff Writer Twin State Valley Media Network
Sunday, June 28, 2009 8:36 PM

SPRINGFIELD -- When it was time for Edgar May to speak Sunday there wasn't much left to say. Other speakers had covered most of the territory.

"Wow," he said, following a standing ovation from a gathering of 150 friends who stopped by to salute May and witness the renaming of the Southern Vermont Health and Recreation Center to The Edgar May Health and Recreation Center.

It was a fitting tribute to the man who led the charge that ended with construction of the center costing $1.4 million.

It will take approximately $5 million to finish the job with phases two and three. Phase two got off to a healthy financial start at the dedication ceremony when May was presented with three checks totaling $910,000.

The biggest check was an anonymous donation of $400,000. The 15-member board of trustees of the center did their part with a $285,000 check and Lolo Sarnoff, a personal friend of May, presented a third check for $225,000 from May's friends.

"I am deeply grateful for the generous comments today," May said as he addressed the audience seated in front of the speakers' platform and others who circled the big indoor pool.

"This is America. Nothing is impossible in America," May said, reminding his friends those words have echoed throughout history. "Hope and optimism are the fuels of this country."

May, who observed his 80th birthday Saturday, said everyone came together because "we said we could build this structure together. That's what makes us so proud to call ourselves Vermonters."

May said this place will always be a place for optimism and hope as it goes through phases two and three. Construction of phase two is expected to start in the next year.

"Today's ceremony is kind of a launching for the financial campaign for the next two phases," said Bob Flint, a member of the trustees at the center. "This is a milestone, not a conclusion," Flint said at the outset of the program.

"Edgar said we will, not yes, we can," said George Lamb, chairman of the board of trustees. That helped set the tone for remarks by speakers that followed.

"His version of the dictionary does not include the word 'no' so off we went with Edgar always in the lead," Lamb said of the effort by May in helping to secure funding for the center.

Lamb told of the scholarship program available at the center to make it affordable for everyone. "They can be on the inside looking out and not on the outside looking in if they want to be a member."

Tom Torti, commissioner of buildings and general services for the State of Vermont at the time, negotiated for the state when dealing with May in the months leading up to construction of the center.

Now the president of the Lake Champlain Chamber of Commerce, Torti said there isn't much that May doesn't have his fingerprints on in Springfield. The list includes the corrections facility, hiking paths, state office building, Jones & Lamson rehabilitation funding and Skitchewaug Trail.

"Don't promise to deliver something you can't deliver," is a lesson Torti said people should take from the life of May.

Former governor Tom Salmon of Bellows Falls said in a larger sense that Sunday's celebration represents the dream and perspective of the life of Edgar May. Salmon said when May came to the United States at a young age he quickly found his way and core values infused in him by his parents. "He has fundamental honesty and fundamental decency," Salmon said.

He praised May for his gentile art of compromise. "You profit by experience. Edgar understood experience is what you get when you don't get what you want. Some of the best experience in life comes from failed judgments," Salmon said.

"You done good," Salmon told May as he summed up May's life to conclude his remarks.

Another former governor, Madeleine Kunin also had kind words for May, her older brother. "We both chose a life of public service and coming to the United States does give you a certain attitude," Kunin said. "We felt we could do whatever we set our dreams on."

Kunin said May made other people feel very good in this process and made people feel they were part of this structure.

"There are many ways to live a life and find happiness. He finds happiness helping people find their own happiness and their potential. The richest part of life is not what you do for yourself but for other people," Kunin said.

"He has redefined the term generosity. Once you set a goal don't let anyone dissuade you," Kunin concluded.

http://www.eagletimes.com/ET/story/090628-aam-spfld-edgar-may-dedication