During a very informal ceremony at the outskirts of the Londonderry Town Forest on Tuesday, Sept. 26, Andy Mack Sr. was honored with the dedication of a sign one of his favorite spots that overlooks his Orchard.
The sign was put there by town officials to preserve the history of the land that was given to the community in 1985.
The sign reads: Mack Family Overlook. The land you are currently standing on was previously owned by long-time Londonderry residents and farmers, The Mack Family. In 1985, Wallace P. Mack, Jr. negotiated a deal with the town of Londonderry, by which he donated a portion of this land, with the Town agreeing to purchase the remaining acres. Since that time, Wallace’s son, Andy Mack Sr., has spent a good part of life promoting the recreational and educational value of open spaceb and land preservation. This spot within Kent Allen Forest, which overlooks part of Moose Hill Orchards, stands as a reminder of the Mack Family’s legacy of sound land stewardship and their generosity to the community.
After a brief presentation by Town Manager Kevin Smith, Mack addressed the small crowd that had been assembled.
He thanked his dad, Wallace, who he knew always wanted it to be used for “something good.”
Mack also expressed the need for the land to be used as a classroom whenever possible and hoped that the area could be enlarged.
With the new sign the town wanted to make sure that generations to come would know where the land came from and would appreciate the donation.
Mack went on to talk about some fond memories of the spot, saying that he and his family would picnic there, and how once there was a fire that scorched the huge oak tree that sit on the overlook which had left a good portion of the trunk hollow.
He also reminisced about when the family was clearing the land with dynamite and how trenches and large boulders would need to be dealt with one stick at a time.
The ceremony ended with apple pie being served on one of the many picnic benches on the outskirts of the town forest.