If Borough Hall in Hopewell Borough looks a little more inviting these days, it’s because of the colorful flower boxes at the front and rear entrances to the municipal building on East Broad Street.
The flower boxes were installed earlier this month by Liam Mooney as part of his Boy Scouts of America Eagle Scout project. Liam, 17, who graduated from Hopewell Valley Central High School in June, belongs to Boy Scout Troop 44 in Pennington.
To reach the top rank of Eagle Scout, which has been achieved by 2 percent of eligible Boy Scouts since the rank’s inception in 1912, a Scout must come up with a project and carry it through to completion.
And that’s what Liam has done.
A large part of an Eagle Scout’s project is demonstrating leadership for younger Boy Scouts, Liam said. He directed the younger boys in planting the flowers and watering them.
The idea for the flowers and flower boxes grew out of Liam’s love of gardening.
“At home, I fill flower pots with plants. It’s fun. I like getting outside and getting my hands dirty and being in the sun,” he said.
Meanwhile, Liam noticed Borough Hall was a fairly new building, but it was lacking in decoration.
“I thought I could liven up the area and make Borough Hall more appealing. I love the look of flowers. The flowers make you want to come back,” he said.
Liam, who comes from an artistic and creative family – his father owns the Brothers Moon restaurant and his mother owns Beth Ann Designs studio/gallery, both in Hopewell Borough – said there is an artistic element to flowers.
“You buy small plants and then you see what plants you want to put together with other plants. Aesthetics is huge in my family. This is my creative outlet. Plants work for me,” Liam said.
While the younger Boy Scouts were integral to the Eagle Scout project, Liam credited family friend Kurt Schulte with providing much assistance.
Schulte helped Liam design and build the flower boxes. It took about three days to build the flower boxes, which were then installed at Borough Hall and filled with annual flowers.
In a nod to Schulte’s help, Liam said, “this project would not have been possible without Kurt.”