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Letter: Remembering Mr. Lighthouse

Editor, Gazette-Journal:

I had the privilege of meeting Earl Soles in 1994 when I was on the board of the Mathews County Historical Society. I had just started teaching at a private school in Gloucester and was anxious to develop a community service/outreach program for my students.

Earl invited me to join the New Point Comfort Lighthouse Task Force because we were both very interested in preserving the structure.

Over the next 14 years, we had field trips to the observation deck. Earl, and very often Marion Grey Trusch, would talk to the children about the history and importance of the lighthouse. He was able to keep their interest and encourage their curiosity about our county’s treasure. Yearly, the children would raise hundreds of dollars toward the lighthouse’s preservation by bake sales, crafts and good deeds. Once, we were featured in Harbour Lights magazine and frequently in the Gazette-Journal. 

I know that Earl influenced over 300 elem-

entary children w...

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