Revitalize Dumont’s restoration effort at the town’s former school building has turned into something larger than a construction project — it has become a community movement. That momentum was on full display Wednesday evening as the nonprofit hosted a public meeting at the legion building, offering a look back at a transformative first year and a glimpse at what comes next.
The meeting opened with a sense of accomplishment. In just twelve months, volunteers have hauled away years of accumulated debris, installed brand-new bleacher seating, and begun the painstaking work of making sections of the long-quiet building usable again. Revitalize Dumont board member Danny Shear is a 1972 graduate of Dumont High School and tells RadioOnTheGo News the story of the past year comes down to one thing: the volunteers.
“People volunteer to mow, people volunteer to cut down trees, we had people volunteer to clean. When we had our clean up day, we had like 62 or 63 people there and we figured it was gonna take us two Saturdays to do it and we cleaned it up in about six hours on one Saturday. But if everybody helps and pitches in with our fundraisers, everybody’s been just perfect. So we’ve gone a long ways in the last year.”
Financial progress was another standout theme of the night. Board president Roger Kregel announced that Revitalize Dumont has raised over $260,000 in its first year — a milestone made possible through grants, community fundraisers, and a surge of donations. Board member and Dumont graduate Mike Thornburgh also highlighted the community’s role in fueling the project’s fundraising success.
“We knew that we had a strong community with a lot of support, but everybody has dug in with whatever they were able to do, whether that was a physical donation, which we needed a lot of. If it was donations of money, we’ve had both. We need both in the future. And we just know that, especially now that we’ve got things started, that people are going to continue. Please reach out and talk to anybody that you can think of that would be interested in helping do this because we’re all going to reap the benefits of the good things that are happening here.”
For more information on upcoming events for Revitalize Dumont or ways to donate, you can visit their Facebook page or fill out a contact form available here.
Photo from Wednesday’s meeting as president Roger Kregel (back, right) presents information from the past year
