SOUTH BERWICK -- The oldest school in Maine, Berwick Academy, now also has another right to brag about: A $3.5 million gift from the wife of an alumnus.

School officials say it is the largest single cash gift within the school's 217-year history.

The money was bequeathed to the school by Helen Hasty Perreault, widow of Berwick Academy alumnus Victor Perreault '33 (their photo, courtesy Berwick Academy, is at right).

Helen was born in South Berwick and had three siblings who were also Berwick Academy Alumni. Mr. Perreault died in 1962, after serving in World War II and spending the bulk of his career as a proofreader at a government printing office in Washington D.C. Helen, who worked as an editor for the Bureau of National Affairs, lived in Virginia until her death in 2007.

Her siblings, Zana Littlefield '35 and Carolyn Bragdon '49 still live in coastal York County.

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