Tenth in a Series: Learning about the New Center for Active Living Project
April 10, 2026 By Glenn Mangurian
If not us, then who?
Stewardship is not passive. It is a choice—a responsibility to sustain and strengthen the community we’ve inherited. Hingham’s quality of life is not fixed; it is dynamic, shaped by the decisions we make and the investments we choose to support. If we value what this town offers, we must be willing to carry it forward.
That responsibility includes caring for those who helped build it.
Our seniors have contributed decades of time, resources, and civic commitment. They value their independence, but they also seek connection, purpose, and the reassurance that their lives still matter. Without those anchors, isolation can take hold—often quietly, but with real consequences for physical and emotional health.
I understand this personally. As part of the “sandwich generation”, I cared for my aging mother while raising my own family. After my father passed, her world grew smaller. She became increasingly isolated and, despite our efforts, distance made it difficult to provide the support she truly needed. Her decline was not sudden—it was gradual, shaped as much by loneliness as by illness. Her experience is not unique.
A Center for Active Living addresses this reality. It is more than a building—it is a place of belonging. A place where people can connect, learn, stay active, and continue to engage in meaningful ways. For some, it may seem like a “nice to have.” For those whose days are defined by medical appointments or limited mobility, it is essential to maintaining dignity, health, and quality of life.
This is what investing in the greater good looks like.
A community is not simply a collection of homes. It is a network of people who recognize their interdependence and choose to act on it. In Hingham, we see this every day—through our schools, our
abundance of open spaces, our recreation opportunities and the countless ways residents give their time and resources to support one another. These are not separate priorities competing for attention;
they are shared expressions of a single civic value: stewardship.
Stewardship asks us to reject false choices. It asks us to consider “and” and not default to “or”. Caring for seniors, educating our children, ensuring our public safety and conserving our environment are not competing obligations. They are complementary investments in the kind of community we want to be. The real question is not whether we can do all of these things—it is whether we are willing to.
Hingham is well positioned to answer “yes.” We have demonstrated this during challenging times. More recently, we have invested in the Foster School and the Public Safety building. We have expanded our recreation opportunities by approving a new swimming pool and pickle ball courts. We have invested in our Harbor resiliency and pristine land off South Pleasant. All of these investments were made possible because of astute financial planning while other towns struggled with affordability challenges.
Hingham continues to earn a AAA bond rating – awarded by the rating agencies to only 10% of Massachusetts cities and towns. This rating reflects our strong financial foundation, disciplined governance, and consistently high demand as a place to live represented by ever increasing property values. Over the past 40 years residents have approved every thoughtfully proposed capital investment. We benefit today from the foresight of those who came before us. Now it is our turn to build upon that legacy.
The new Center for Active Living is the next opportunity to make our stewardship real. The new facility offers synergies with its neighboring Bare Cove Park through environmental education and a gateway for new visitors. Investing in the Center is a statement about who we are. It affirms that we value connection over isolation, dignity over neglect, and continued long-term strength over short-term hesitation. It signals that we understand stewardship not as maintenance, but as opportunity and progress.
We are not just residents of Hingham. We are its caretakers—for today and for the future.
I am a steward, and I support the Center for Active Living.
Will you join me?
Glenn Mangurian is a Hingham resident of 42 years. He welcomes your comments and can be reached at gmangurian@comcast.net
