Beaton running for My Brother’s Table

Note: The following article, reprinted from the Daily Evening Item (Lynn) of April 18, 1998, was supposed to have been included in the last issue of the CMS newsletter. Due to an unfortunate production error, it was not. That’s the bad news. The good news is that Mark, a CMS member, successfully completed the run.	Contributions may still be made to My Brother’s Table.
Mark Beaton of Fitwilliam, N.H., has chosen an unusual way to honor the memory of his father, a former Lynner who died in 1973 at the age of 52.
Beaton and his friend, Kevin Bresland, are running the Kancamagus highway in New Hampshire today. The duo are undertaking the 32-mile trek to raise money for My Brother’s Table in Lynn.
Beaton’s father, Daniel R. "Dick" Beaton, was born in Lynn in the early 1920s. He grew up on Rowell Avenue near English High School. The elder Beaton graduated from English High in the 1930s. While in school, he played basesball and basketball and was also an excellent golfer and a member of the "Meadowlarks" at The Meadows Playground (Keaney Park).
When he decided to run the Kancamagus (from Lincoln, N.H. to Conway, N.H.) in his father’s memory, the younger Beaton began looking for a charity in his dad’s home town. He heard about My Brother’s Table and began making inquiries.
Two months ago, Lynn funeral director David J. Solimine Sr. received a phone call from the younger Beaton. Beaton had called Lynn City Hall seeking information about My Brother’s Table and was referred to Solimine, who is a volunteer there. The two have become phone friends and will finally meet April 26 at the My Brother’s Table workers appreciation dinner.
"Mark is a very enthusiastic person and has stimulated many people’s support for this fund-raiser," Solimine said.
"This is something my Dad would be very proud of. Where he died so young, I wanted to do something special for him," Beaton said.
Beaton and Bresland are not strangers to long-distance running. Beaton has run 31 marathons and Bresland in four. The two are looking for local people who would be interested in sponsoring them or simply making a donation. Beaton would also love to hear from any Lynners who grew up with his family.
The older Beaton was a wool salesman for more than 30 years with Forte, Dupee, Sawyer Wool Co. of Boston. He frequently traveled the Kancamagus from mill to mill.
Dick Beaton married the former Shirley Goodwin of Arlington after World war II.
The Beatons had three sons, Danny, Mark and Tommy. Dick Beaton also had three sisters and one brother. Marje and Phyllis are deceased and Dora lives in Wakefield. Don, the brother, lives in Groveland.
Anyone who would like to sponsor the two men can do so by contacting David Solimine Sr. at 781-595-1492, or by mailing donations, made out to My Brother’s table, to Solimine at 426 Broadway, Lynn, MA 01904.