Mayor of the Park

Have you ever walked by something a hundred times and never really looked at it? I mean, you see it there but you never really took the time to look at it. This park bench is something that I walked past more times than I can count but, to me, it was always just a park bench; nothing worth examining. Ah, I turned out to be wrong....

I was out on my usual lunchtime walk through Lake Topanemus Park when some movement caught my eye so I stopped to see what it was. It turned out to be a robin landing on the back of a park bench, this park bench. The bird flew off as quickly as it had come in and was gone before I could get a shot off but I noticed the hats hanging off the back of the bench. I thought it was odd, I could understand one (1) hat - someone could have found it on the ground and hung it there for the owner to see when they realized it was missing - but there were two (2) hats. That had to be significant so I walked over to the bench and looked at it from the front. That is where I saw the plaque dedicating the bench to George & Montana. My first thought was that George and Montana were a couple of lifelong friends who would meet at the park and talk about old times; that would explain two hats. I could picture them sitting on the bench, watching the birds come and go, fish jumping in the lake, squirrels, chipmunks, etc... and talking. What a great way to spend the afternoon!

The more I thought about the two men and the bench the more I thought maybe I was wrong. I have never heard of anyone being named "Montana" (I know it is possible, after all there is a Dakota....) but it wouldn't be unreasonable to think that maybe Montana was a dog. THAT made sense! I could see them walking to the bench, George with his baseball cap and a light windbreaker and Montana walking beside him. Montana would have to be a large dog - possibly German Shepherd or a Labrador Retriever - and he most certainly was George's constant companion and friendly. They would walk to the bench and maybe have lunch while taking in the sun in the summer or watching the leaves change color and fall to the ground in autumn. How many hours did they spend at that bench? How many people stopped to say hello to George or to pet Montana? How many just walked by without noticing like I did with the bench?

The more I thought about that bench the more I wished I had met George and Montana and spent time getting to know them. I don't know why but I think the three of us would have enjoyed sitting in the noonday sun talking about nothing in particular. Now, I may be completely wrong and George may have been married to a lovely lady named Montana who liked wearing baseball caps. They may have been brothers. Who knows? Who cares? It doesn't really matter who George & Montana were, what matters is that they are no longer around but their family and friends loved them enough to set up a memorial at a place that was special for them. That is the real story behind the bench; George and Montana were special. Isn't that what we all want in the end; to matter enough to someone that they would memorialize you for all the world to see?

Postscript: I originally wrote the above post for another blog in September 2015 and then set out to find out exactly who George and Montana were. I spoke with Greg, Lake Topanemus Commissioner, and he filled in the blanks for me. It turns out the George was George Buttacavoli and Montana is believed to have been a wolfhound. George was called the "Mayor of the Park" by those who knew him and people would stop to talk or play with Montana. It seems fishing and politics were a couple topics that were towards the top of the list. George died suddenly of a heart attack in December 2012 at the age of 63 and Montana was sent to a rescue in Northern New Jersey. The more I learned of George and Montana, the more I wish I had discovered the park a few years earlier and had the pleasure of knowing them. I have been back to the park many times since taking these photos and pass by the bench virtually every time. There have been occasions when I do not pass by the bench; I stop and sit on the bench and wonder what George would want to talk about....

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All photos are copyright Joseph S. Valencia All Rights Reserved They may not be used in any way without express written permission of the photographer. If you wish to use any of the photos you may contact the photographer at valencia32photo@gmail.com

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