Newburyport's Walker named as Nichols Park scholarship winner

Jun. 3—NEWBURYPORT — A Newburyport High School graduate has become the first student to be awarded $1,000 from the Nichols Park Scholarship Fund.

Charles Nichols spent the better part of 20 years turning a 100-foot by 75-foot "lump of mud" located on the river side of the Green Street municipal parking lot into what is now known as Nichols Park.

"It's the little park that could and did," he said.

The park itself was built in 2013 and the city has more recently added a small brick walkway, while the Newburyport Five Cents Savings Bank dedicated a metal bench in the Nichols' family name to the site as well.

Hoping to keep the park alive in the city's memory, Nichols and his wife Susan established the family-funded Nichols Park Scholarship Fund last year and awarded its first $1,000 prize to Newburyport High School senior Sam Walker during an awards ceremony on May 25.

The Nichols Park Scholarship Fund is intended for Newburyport High School students interested in environmental science.

Walker will be attending Connecticut College, with an interest in studying film, art and environmental science in the fall and he had a chance to meet Charles Nichols when accepting his scholarship award on May 25.

"This little park is neat and this is sort of an up-and-coming scholarship. I was very honored to get it," Walker said.

Walker is a Newburyport native who grew up on Eagle Street and said he is honored to be the scholarship's inaugural recipient.

"I spent my childhood here and now I get to have my name branded with something that is pretty permanent in the city. It's kind of like establishing new roots with a strong foundation in your hometown," he said. "It's hard to express but it feels really cool."

Nichols used to live at Merrimac Landing and he also worked as the park manager for Waterfront Park.

He had a chance to meet Walker at last month's awards ceremony and said he was very impressed by the young man, who he told to, "go out and do some good."

"He and the rest of the kids at that ceremony really restored my faith in our teenagers. Sam is a smart, good looking kid and he is going to go places," Nichols said of Walker.

Staff writer Jim Sullivan covers Amesbury and Salisbury for The Daily News. He can be reached via email at jsullivan@newburyportnews.com or by phone at 978-961-3145. Follow him on Twitter @ndnsully.

Staff writer Jim Sullivan covers Amesbury and Salisbury for The Daily News. He can be reached via email at jsullivan@newburyportnews.com or by phone at 978-961-3145. Follow him on Twitter @ndnsully.