FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
East Washington Contact: Councilman Joseph Fulton
Nicholas Cumer Family Contact: Rev. Brian Greenleaf
EAST WASHINGTON, Pa. (July 21, 2021) … The Borough of East Washington will hold its annual community picnic on Sunday, August 15, at East Washington Borough Park, where the park will be renamed to honor East Washington native, Nicholas Cumer.
Cumer died saving two co-workers during a mass shooting in Dayton, Ohio, in 2019.
The event begins at 3 p.m. with the rededication of the park at 4 p.m. The new park sign featuring Cumer will be unveiled by borough council at this time, and plans include some excitement and surprises. Dinner featuring Albert’s hot dogs from Green Valley Packing will follow the rededication ceremony.
The picnic includes fun activities for adults and kids alike. Everyone can get pictures of the Batmobile when Batman arrives at 3:30 p.m. In addition, an East Washington police car and City of Washington firetruck will be available for pictures. Batman will speak at 5 p.m. on turning pain into power. After Batman speaks, activities include music, karaoke, children’s games, face painting, caricatures, and shaved ice from Kona Ice.
A dunk tank will also be on site for community members to try to dunk the mayor and current and former members of council. All donations from the dunk tank will benefit the Nicholas Cumer Scholarship Fund.
Established in 1892, the Borough of East Washington is a mostly residential borough with a population of around 2,200.
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Backgrounder
Nicolas Cumer was born August 21, 1993. He was a 2012 graduate of Washington High School, where he was a member of the marching band and played on the tennis, basketball and volleyball teams. Cumer attended Washington Alliance Church and volunteered at the Washington Hospital physical therapy department.
Cumer earned his bachelor’s degree in exercise physiology and master’s degree in cancer care at Saint Francis University, where he played sousaphone in the marching band.
He interned at Maple Tree Cancer Center in Dayton, Ohio, and was offered a job at a new Maple Tree office in the Pittsburgh area.
On August 4, 2019, just a few days before the internship was to end and Cumer was to start his new job, he and a few friends went for an evening out. That evening a mass shooter attacked the establishment where Cumer and his friends were. He shielded his friends from the attack, saving their lives, but sadly giving his own.
The Nicholas Cumer Scholarship Fund was set up to provide scholarships to students in Washington High School who are pursuing careers in the medical field. For more information on the scholarship fund, please visit https://www.wccf.net/for-scholarships/wccf-scholarships/nicholas-cumer-scholarshio-fund.