The deed has been signed and it’s finally official – the Town of Marion has taken ownership of the VFW building.

At a meeting Wednesday morning between the Board of Selectmen and Demi Barros and Rodney Hunt of the Benjamin D. Cushing VFW Post signed the deed to hand the property over to the town.

“This is a special meeting for this board and for the VFW post,” Chair Jody Dickerson said, “but it’s also a sad time.”

The meeting was also emotional for Selectman and veteran Steve Cushing. His great uncle is the post's namesake.

“This is a very sad day, it means a lot to me personally,” he said. “Serving the country is a family tradition in my family, so today is just a sad day to see this coming to an end. I want to thank all of you for what you’ve done for this community. What you did was huge over the years, so thank you.”

The gratitude for the post’s service to the town continued as Selectman Steve Gonsalves expressed his thanks.

“You men were great examples not only to me but to my sons and to my family,” he said. “I am forever thankful.”

It was a tough day for members of the post as well, as they reflected on their dedication to the VFW over the years.

“It is a sad day for us,” Post Commander Barros said. “We put in a lot of time and did a lot of things for the town, and the town did a lot for us. When our membership was dwindling, the town was there, the [Department of Public Works] was there. The best part is that it’s going to the town. The property has a lot of potential there, so hopefully we’ll see some good things going down.”