Honoring a Legend

On December 19, Winchester honored local resident and rock and roll legend Herb Reed, founding member of the Platters, with a park bench. The bench is located at the small plaza at the Duck Pond on Main Street, adjacent to Karol’s Ice Cream.

The bench was purchased by Mr. Reed’s long-time personal assistant Gail Stewart as part of Winchester Chamber of Commerce’s beautification project. This project has replaced wooden benches in the Center with attractive, black metal units. The December dedication was scheduled to coincide with World AIDS Day, a humanitarian initiative supported by Herb Reed.

I was excited and pleased to participate in the dedication along with State Representative Paul Casey, Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Cathy Alexander and other friends and supporters of Herb Reed. Although I grew up in the 1960’s and 1970’s, I was turned on to 1950’s music after seeing the film “American Graffiti”. The Platters’ music typifies the beautiful ballads of the 1950’s.

The bench dedication event was especially satisfying because I had the chance to meet Herb Reed. Despite his worldwide stardom, Herb is a down to earth guy with a great sense of humor. Winchester is honored to have Herb Reed as a citizen.