STONINGTON, Conn. — On Saturday at 2 p.m.., the Stonington Little League will officially cut the ribbon on its newly established Memorial Park and Playscape at 43 North Anguilla Road. The original scheduled time was 11 a.m. but has been moved to the afternoon due to forecasted weather.
The reimagined space was inspired by Kevin Hesch, of Pawcatuck, who lost his life in a car accident on Interstate 95 in Stonington last April. Hesch is survived by his wife Heather and five young children, who are currently ages 10, 8, 7, 4 and 2.
Hesch volunteered at the local little league as a coach and was active in the community, supporting all of his children’s endeavors.
“Kevin’s kind and joyous spirit was an inspiration to all who knew him,” Liz Santillo, director of marketing for Stonington Little League, said in a release this week. “Our community wanted a way to honor his spirit. The idea to install a playscape to help carry on Kevin’s legacy began to form.”
The little league began fundraising to build a playscape with the blessing of Heather. The project eventually grew into a Memorial & Scholarship Committee and received funding from the Hesch family, Electric Boat, who was Hesch’s employer, and the community at large.
“(They) have made it possible to have the playscape installed with a beautiful memorial stone, which honors Kevin and other late members of our little league community,” Santillo said.
The committee will continue raising money to maintain the park and playscape and anticipates creating scholarships for alumni of the local little league this spring.
The public is invited to join community members at the grand opening ribbon cutting ceremony on Saturday, which will feature a blessing from local clergy. Heather is also expected to speak.
UPDATE:
One can contribute to the Kevin Hesch Memorial Project here. The goal is to raise $50,000. As of April 18, the community had raised just over $38,000.
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Dalton Zbierski is a digital content producer at FOX61 News. He can be reached at dzbierski@FOX61.com.
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