The story of how a community is rewriting its future by revitalizing their connections to the past.
The Moorestown project was conceived by Moorestown native Richard Gray and focuses on gathering oral histories, photographs, and artifacts related to the West End Community Center (WECC).
“The goal of this project is to make sure that this important part of the history of Moorestown is not lost.”
Richard Gray – Director of Community
The window is closing.
The elders who hold knowledge are aging. The photographs are in shoeboxes. The voices are on voicemail recordings that will be deleted when a phone plan expires. The cost of forgetting is always greater than the cost of remembering. This simple understanding brought Richard and Rob together.
The project began in 2022 out a sense of urgency, borne from fear of loss, and grief over those already gone. The West End Community Center Oral History Project started off as an act of preservation.
Early in the Project
The project grew quickly, which led Richard to the partners with the Moorestown Historical Society, a volunteer run organization dedicated to preserving the history of Moorestown, and to providing opportunities for the community to learn about the past.
The project team processed collections personal stories, photos, correspondence, and newspaper clippings about the WECC.
In 2024 Richard led a lecture at the Moorestown Community House, stewarded by the Historical Society. Watch Remembering the West End Community Center lecture with Richard Gray click here.
In 2025 the Historical Society of Moorestown was awarded a $25,000 Inclusive History Grant from the New Jersey Historical Commission.
This grant supports the WestEnd Community Center Oral History Project, an initiative aimed at preserving and sharing the history of the West End Community Center (WECC).
Every time an elder passes away, a library burns. – Mayor Quinton Law, Mayorathon × Remembrance 2025
From Preservation to a National Model of Remembrance
Five Years of Proof
| 2021 | 1 Family | Professor Richard Gray, a local, shared his memories of the WestEnd |
| 2022 | 1 Story | alchemized into an oral history archive that changed a park proposal from recreation to commemoration |
| 2022-2025 | $350,000+ | in municipal & state funding unlocked through the community storytelling movement in Moorestown, NJ |
| 2025 | TEDx | platform on remembrance as democratic infrastructure — generating ongoing institutional inbound |
| 2026 | 2 → 250 | block party growth trajectory — real civic participation, documented and growing |
By the Winter of 2025 The WECC project was a nationally recognized model for historical preservation and communicate activism, features in TEDx, The Moorestown Mayorathon, and South New Jersey Magazine.
“Together, we’re improving this space for the next generation of families – and I think that’s truly special.” – Mayor Quinton Laaw
What’s Next for the Moorestown Project?!
Have you heard about the Fall Block Party? Register here.
The Block Party brings our stories together. Together, we are building a model for belonging anchored in wisdom of our Moorestown collective memories.
Join the Annual block party, we hope to see 250 locals, with vendors and family activities. There will be Elder interviews, intergenerational storytelling, and other Historical Society archives. The 2026 celebration anchors Moorestown’s 250th anniversary narrative nationally.
The WestEnd Community Center Was…(read more)
Over its 25 years of operation, the center provided essential recreational and social opportunities for thousands of children and adults.
The center was managed by Black residents who created programs and events that strengthened their neighborhood, offering a joyful refuge from the discrimination that barred African-Americans from using the Moorestown Community House on Main Street. From 1944 to 1968, WECC served as the social and cultural hub for Moorestown’s segregated WestEnd neighborhood, fostering deep community ties and a sense of belonging.
Those who remember the WestEnd today will tell you it was a place that provided belonging for all communities and fostered cross-cultural ties that still connect locals today.
However, following the eventual integration of the Community House, the WECC closed in 1968 and was demolished around 1975.
Many of the artifacts were gathered and preserved by a team of dedicated volunteers. Each object was donated by a local. Many of the artifacts and preserved by the Moorestown Historical Society at the Smith-Cadbury Mansion in Moorestown NJ. Link to MHS Oral Histories.
Our Model
“We can lead with joy and by uplifting elders of the WestEnd we find a model of integration ‘By The People.”
We Anchor in Elders’ Stories
A single community voice sparked collecting narrating, and activations that became a National Model and the origin of $300,000+ in municipal /state funding for Yancey Adams Park, where the WECC once stood.
We‘re Modeling The WestEnd’s Spirit
The Gray Family began telling stories, connecting families, and leading communities.
Rob & Remembrance, began connecting the stories and building Remembrance, the social infrastructure.
The Moorestown Historical Society acts as a touch point for artifacts and engagement in a new way.
We Bring Storytellers Together
The Mayor opens the “public square” to stories of a Moorestown that ignite memories nationally.
A 250th anniversary approaching, a collective of WestEnd Families whose history was never fully integrated, and a Better Together Vision that operates in the spirit of the WestEnd.
JOIN US: Three Ways to Act Today
| GIVE | TELL | SHOW UP | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Donate at any level, Every gift is matched by the Remembrance team’s commitment— more stories, more trust, more remembrance. | Share this with one person who cares about community, culture, or legacy. The movement grows when believers bring others in. | Come to the block party this fall. Bring your family. Bring your elders. Bring your questions. The best gift you can give is your presence in the story. | ||
| “The most powerful data on earth lives in the memory of our elders. Your support keeps it alive.” The future is built on the stories we choose to remember. |