In 1924 the Wakefield Memorial Building was
constructed as the centerpiece for the town of Wakefield, Michigan. Located on
the shores of beautiful Sunday Lake, it was decided by the citizens of Wakefield
that the building should be a World War I memorial used exclusively as a
“gathering place” for the community. The town reasoned it was the duty of the
community to preserve the memory of those who had sacrificed so much in the
global conflict and that the best way to do so would be through a facility that
they could all use everyday.
In the 1950’s after the iron mines closed in Gogebic County, the major tax base was lost and the city no longer had adequate funds to operate the Memorial Building. During the ensuing decades, other entities owned the building but little was done to sustain it. Today the building is structurally unsound and in a dilapidated state. In July of 2004, Marvin Suomi, a 1965 graduate of Wakefield High School purchased the Wakefield Memorial Building. Headed by Mr. Suomi, the Wakefield Memorial Building Foundation was established as a 501(c)(3) organization to demolish the current building and construct a new, smaller, energy efficient/sustainable building that will once again be a functional community center which will house city offices, the city library, a theater, and a swimming pool. The building may also house critical incubator space for new industry – jobs so critical to the western portion of the Upper Peninsula. When the projhect is complete, the building will be operated by the City and utilized by the entire community, which is comprised of 66 percent low and moderate income persons.