Williamstown officials, residents and family members gathered outside the main entrance of the Monroe library on the morning of Sept. 21 to honor the late Mayor Michael F. Gabbianelli.
“We are very pleased, because Mike was very important to the development of these grounds and the library,” said Joan Betterly, president of the library’s board of trustees, during the dedication to name the library property at 713 Marsha Ave. the Mayor Michael F. Gabbianelli Complex.
The building and grounds had belonged to Verizon, and were in bad shape, Betterly noted.
“Look at the beautiful building we have today,” she said. “There is a garden in the back of the property. The mayor was very good to us.”
As mayor, Gabbianelli facilitated the purchase of the land and the renovation of the former Verizon building into a magnificent, modern library, replacing the old, smaller library building on Main Street.
“Today we honor a man who has done so much for this community,” current Mayor Gregory Wolfe observed. “The library would not be here without Michael Gabbianelli. Most of his life was dedicated to Monroe Township.”
Gabbianelli served in the Williamstown police department for 25 years, retiring as a lieutenant, then decided to go into politics and served as mayor for 12 years, from 2002 to 2014, according to Wolfe.
Gabbianelli helped develop the youth soccer complex and aided the youth football league by finding fields for it to play on. “Near and dear to his heart” was the Sunshine Rotary Club, with whom Gabbianelli helped organize a Make-a-Wish trip to Disneyland. On his own time, he took youngsters out of their wheelchairs and put them on rides at the park.
“He was a gentle giant,” Wolfe remarked, adding that Gabbianelli had a big heart and cared about the residents of Williamstown. “His bark was louder than his bite. His legacy will live on for many years.”
The late mayor arranged funding to purchase the Verizon property and oversaw its transition to a library, said Deputy Mayor Joe Kurz, who worked with Gabbianelli as a detective. Township Council Vice President Donald Heverly recognized the late mayor’s children and family at the dedication.
“There are some 30 family members here today to honor Mayor Gabbianelli,” he observed.
Heverly said the dedication was well deserved: Gabbianelli, who passed away on Sept. 11 last year, served the township “for three-fourths of his life.”
“The library is part of the backbone of the township,” Heverly explained, “and Williamstown is a tight-knit community with a small-town feel.”
“This is a great event today,” library director Samantha Snyder noted of the ceremony. “I love it whenever we can partner with the township administration.”
The library’s history dates to the 19th century, just 13 years after the Civil War ended. In 1878, the Free Library and Reading Room-Williamstown Memorial Library opened its doors on Main Street. By 1883, teenage boys could take out a copy of the newly-published “Treasure Island” by Robert Louis Stevenson, and adults could browse through an array of newspapers and popular magazines.
Thanks to the efforts of the late mayor, the new, much-larger library opened its doors on Oct. 13, 2009. Today, residents can avail themselves of numerous library programs and services, stroll the grounds of the newly named complex, and even read a book outside on Gabbianelli’s memorial bench.
