On May 19, 2024, the 51 Leeds flood victims and Leeds hero, Myron Day were honored in a way that was full of heart and brought out the best of Leeds. Kris and Bill Cobb generously offered the use of the church lawn for the ceremony and the church hall for the river art display and refreshment reception. Approximately 125  people attended. The program started with a recounting of how the flood swept through Leeds and Myron Day’s courageous ride back to Leeds to warn the village.  Excerpts from Fred Howard’s letters to his brother describing his eye witness account of the flood and its immediate aftermath were read by Sam Daniel, who is close in age to Fred. (Fred, 22, worked at the button mill and lived on Chesterfield Road.) The original song “What Happened That Day” written by John Daniel and performed by David, Trine, Alma, Clara and Isabella Rondina, with John Daniel on keyboard and Greg White on bass was performed. Following the song, each victim’s name was read by a person close in age and a soft bell was rung after each. To honor Myron Day, a Red Bud tree, which blooms in May, was planted on the church lawn across from the Leeds Flood Memorial. It was the fourth of 144 trees to be planted in the next 5 years along the flood’s route by the Mill River Flood Memorial Tree Project hosted by the Mill River Greenway (139 trees for victims, 5 for heroes of the day).

After the Leeds ceremony, inside the church, guests had an opportunity to see the Tiffany Gold medal that was awarded to Myron Day for his bravery and humanity (courtesy of Historic Northampton). People enjoyed lemonade,  light snacks and mingled while viewing the art show. The exhibit included 19 art pieces, some of which incorporated patterned ceramic shards and glass smoothed by years spent in the Mill River. Art inspired by and specific to the flood crashing through Leeds were part of the exhibit.

To help people visualize the height of the flood water a 20’  tall blue fabric banner was hung from the church. Imagine another 10 feet of water spray above the 20’ mark. Terrifying! (The banner remained up until early November along with the  72  flood markers in 5 villages.)

The Leeds commemoration event was a success because neighbors chipped in to make it so. Shawn Gunderson set up the sound equipment, Michael Kester videotaped the ceremony. Tricia Reidy, Julie Akeret, Bill and Kris Cobb, and myself prepared refreshments.Justin O’Connor and Jim Mias set up chairs in perfectly spaced rows! Dody Riggs helped the reader’s practice. The seven readers were Penny Geis, Jon Dietrich, Erin Mahon-Moore, Sam Daniel, Elsie Baker, Raine Maiore, and Isabella Rondina. Hearing the name and age of  each victim was very moving.

Art pieces were created by Julie Akeret, Jim Mias, Heidi Stevens, Nancy Meagher, Lora Sandhusen, Greta Moore, Ben O’Connor, Kris Cobb, and the Leeds after school river enrichment club.

It’s possible that 50 years from now Leeds residents will draw inspiration from the 2024 commemoration event as we did from the 1999 LCA Flood Memorial unveiling ceremony. The 2024 programs, speeches and flood banner are archived at Meekins Library. Digital content is archived at Historic Northampton.

By Heidi Stevens