Joseph G. Hakey and Lester G. Hakey Fund

This fund was established on Christmas Eve 1991 by Lester Hakey’s parent’s nine years after his death, which occurred just before Christmas in 1982 as a result of a single car crash. Lester was a WHS Class of 1979 graduate and had attended Northern Essex Community College. His father, Joe Hakey, was a well-known news photographer for area publications and always enjoyed “school assignments” such as class activities, parent, teacher, and student programs. He especially liked covering any of the sporting events and academic awards programs from kindergarten through 12th grade and getting to know the students and their families and, as the years passed, their children and grandchildren. Joe died in November 2001 after a brief bout with cancer.