Family Raising Money to Name Park for Fallen Soldier

By Amber Lester Kennedy Sunday, January 15, 2012

 

Paul Dumont loved the outdoors. He loved playing as a child, and as an adult with a childlike spirit. He loved riding mountain bikes, especially on the land at Freedom Park, where his family now hopes to memorialize him.

 

Dumont, a 2004 graduate of Jamestown High School, was killed in a non-combat related incident at Kandahar Airfield in Afghanistan in August 2009. He was assigned to the 149th Transportation Company, 10th transportation Battalion, Ford Eustis.

Dumont’s family is now spearheading a campaign to make sure their son and brother is not forgotten. They hope to have a new playground built at Freedom Park and named for him. They’re working in conjunction with James City County Parks and Recreation, which wants to construct a park tied to the natural elements of the area. But to have the park named for Dumont, his family will have to raise half of the costs – $50,000.

“We decided to do a playground because Paul was a very outdoorsy, very fun guy,” said his sister, Jessica Dumont-Oatman. “He was the middle of seven kids, so he always loved to hang out. We thought a playground was suitable to the kind of personality he had.”

A laser tag fundraiser at the Williamsburg Indoor Sports Complex later this month will raise money for the project. WISC will donate 25 percent of its admission revenue for laser tag on Jan. 21 and 22.

The family has also begun to sell apparel, including short-sleeved and long-sleeved T-shirts that say “Support Our Troops” on the front and “Honor the Fallen” on the back. T-shirts can be purchased for $20 and sweatshirts for $40 online here. Potential donors can also give money through the site.

Because they’re working toward one project, the family did not establish a nonprofit 501(c)3, which would make donations tax-exempt. “We’re relying on the kindness of the community to help do this,” Dumont-Oatman said. “It’s for the children who live here in Williamsburg.”

Dumont-Oatman said she wants to make sure the families who visit the possible Paul Dumont, Jr. Park will remember him. “He was someone special for us … we don’t want him to be forgotten for what he did for our country,” she said. “I want to have a photo of him with a plaque, so he’s not just a name.”