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Cooke Park's opening, through the eyes of the people who grew up there
Published 4 weeks, 1 day ago
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Galesburg's Cooke Park officially opened Wednesday, Aug. 26, on the site of the former Cooke Elementary School. Mayor Peter Schwartzman spoke at the ribbon-cutting ceremony, and WGIL sat down separately with four Galesburg residents who grew up on the same ground: Ward 4 Alderman Dwight White, Margaret Gimenez, Jack Perez and Gayla Pacheco, the Galesburg native widely credited with leading the years-long push to build the park. They talked about: Why Mayor Schwartzman calls the park one of the proudest moments of his time in office What it was like growing up on the site when it was Cooke School, from the 1940s through the 1970s Margaret Gimenez becoming one of the school's first girl patrol guards How the park could help unite different parts of Galesburg Gayla Pacheco's years-long push to bring the park to life Related story: Cooke Park opens with a ribbon-cutting, and decades of memories 🎧 Subscribe to Galesburg's Morning News: Apple Podcasts | Spotify