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THE VILLAGE CLUB |
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NEEDHAM'S OLDEST SOCIAL
AND CIVIL ORGANIZATION |
Looking back to old Needham, long
before Rt. 128 and the Industrial Center and before there
was a high school on the hill and antennas dotting our
landscape, times where simpler.
The year is 1914 and Needham has a new Town Hall and The
Carters Company is one of Needham's largest employers. William
Carter president of The Carters Company and some of the
leading businessmen and community leaders begin informal
meetings to socialize and organize civil and charitable
events, within months this group formally organized under
the name of The Village Club.
The Village Club never a political group began its long and
esteemed contributions to the Town of Needham.
Its first meeting place was over Henry Childs store the old
Highland Building (now Starbucks Coffee) soon the Club grew
and moved to the Carter Annex the site of the original town
library until it purchased the property at it current
location on Morton Street in 1953.
It was the Village Club that built the first play
ground in Need ham Heights
Today as you drive through Needham you may notice such
landmarks as the stone arch of Memorial Park conceived and
built by Club members in 1984, travel a little further and
as you pass Greene's field wonderful playground note that
many Club members helped pitch into help build, as you enter
Defazio Complex (Village Club President, 1950) you may
notice the Asa Small (Asa Small Sr. V.C. member) stone
monument and if you have ever sat at the many picnic tables
at The Carleton Pavilion they were donated and built from
scratch by a team of Village Club members.
The Village Club and its Members are a large part of Needham
and its history from The Carter Methodist Church (named for
V.C. founders Family) to the many fields
In town named after its members, The Defazio Complex, Small
Field, Claxton Field and John Cusick Park
The Club has long been a champion of youth sports in the
town and began the tradition of hosting the Annual Banquet
for the High school football team and did so for nearly 65
years in till recently when the banquet became so large that
it had to move the Needham Sheraton.
The Club continues this tradition hosting most of the Youth Organizations
meetings and Banquets as well as donating to most youth
sports leagues in Needham. |
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