Oh, if these tired old walls could talk, I mused as I followed Lew Chipola, former Nashua Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 483 commander, along the hallowed halls and creaky staircases of the landmark edifice generations of members called home for 84 of the organization’s 921⁄2 years.
Though Chipola joined Post 483 just seven years ago after moving from New Jersey, the Vietnam veteran is quite well versed on the history of 2 Quincy St. and makes a great tour guide.
But the walls, well, they’ve been listening from the get-go – Sunday, Feb. 10, 1929.
A gala dedication and open house that day drew local war veterans of all kinds to the corner of Quincy and East Pearl streets, many of whom marched in parade formation to Deschenes Oval and back, according to The Telegraph’s next-day story.
Now, more than eight decades later, Post 483 members are in the process of saying goodbye to 2 Quincy St., which grew into a blend of three buildings in order to accommodate a membership that floated just above 1,000 for decades.
Come April, assuming all goes as planned, the Nashua Soup Kitchen & Shelter will be the proud new occupants of 2 Quincy St., the result of a transaction that seller and buyer have hailed as a win-win solution for both organizations.
The equation is simple: With declining membership, the cash-strapped VFW needs a smaller place; the Soup Kitchen, with increasing demand, needs a bigger place that’s close to downtown.
All along, Post 483 leadership has emphasized an important point: The organization is moving, not disbanding.
“There will always be a VFW Post 483 in Nashua,” Cmdr.![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
↧