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Letter: What I Meant to Say Was...
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Business New Haven
11/10/2003
By:
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I am writing to clarify some issues related to the New Haven Colony Historical Society's selection of New Haven Savings Bank as the 2003 Seal of the City Award recipient.
Your editorial of October 13 suggested that the board of directors of the New Haven Colony Historical Society had reconsidered or changed their decision to grant this year's award to New Haven Savings Bank. This is not the case. The Historical Society remains committed to presenting the Seal of the City Award to the bank this year in recognition of its significant contributions to the greater New Haven community now and throughout its 165-year history. The award will now be presented at a ceremony being planned for early December.
It is also important to note that the decision to postpone the award presentation was made in response to the bank's suggestion that a gala dinner at this time might not be appropriate given the concern in the community about the bank's plans to convert to a public company. The bank's suggestion to postpone the event was made as a courtesy to the Historical Society and to others in the community who might feel that a gala dinner was not the proper venue at which to present the award this year.
The Historical Society stands firm in its decision to award the Seal of the City to New Haven Savings Bank for what it and its employees have accomplished over the last 165 years to make greater New Haven a better place to live and work.
- Peter Lamothe
Executive Director
New Haven Colony Historical Society
The editor replies: We appreciate the sensitivity that a small non-profit like the New Haven Colony Historical Society is forced to exercise in dealing with a large benefactor such as New Haven Savings. Indeed, NHSB recently gave the historical society a $50,000 "gift" as compensation for the trouble and embarrassment of discovering that its Seal of the City awardee-to-be had elected to recast itself in the minds of so many as the business community's Public Enemy No. 1. Nevertheless, we stand by our characterization of the facts, based on a conversation between Mr. Lamothe and BNH Editor Michael C. Bingham that took place last month.
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