43
Man makes bequest to park
By Elise Franco
AUSTINTOWN
When Stephen Furman’s wife, Mary, died 10 years ago, he donated $10,000 to Austintown Township Park in her name. But his generosity didn’t end there.
Furman, who died in February at 91, bequeathed an additional $5,000 for use in the park he loved, said park supervisor Joyce Gottron.
Gottron said Furman asked that the park use the first donation to plant 16 seedless maple trees, which now line the entrance. She said the park department will use the new donation to finish upgrades on one of the park’s pavilions.
“We’re going to put in some seedless maples around the pavilion and rename it the Stephen and Mary Furman Pavilion,” she said. The pavilion sits in the back left corner of the park.
Gottron said Furman, a lifelong resident of Youngstown’s West Side, was a permanent fixture at the park before and after his wife’s death. She said naming the pavilion after the couple is the park’s way of making sure their memory lives on.
“They walked their dogs together here daily,” she said. “After Mary died, Steve would come in and tend to the [maple] trees and spend time walking around. He felt connected to her here.”
Furman’s goddaughter, Heidi Perry of Youngstown, said Furman, was a strong father figure throughout her life and was always a generous man.
“He took my brother under his wing at a young age, and when my brother and sister’s father died, he stepped up to help our family,” Perry said.
Perry said her godfather lived just a stone’s throw away from Mill Creek MetroParks but chose to drive out to Austintown Township Park every day.
“Once he found Austintown, it was all he ever talked about,” she said. “He found great comfort ... He found his home here.”
Gottron said Furman didn’t want an obituary to run in the newspaper, so the park employees and many of the other park regulars didn’t know he’d died until Perry contacted Gottron about the donation.
“We had an attachment to Steve because he’s been a part of this park for years,” Gottron said. “He hadn’t been in the park for a year-and-a-half because of his health, but people still ask about him.”
Perry said she’s glad to know Furman touched so many people at Austintown Township Park.
“It’s a good feeling that so many people here remember him,” she said. “Knowing how much he meant to the park that meant so much to him is comforting.”