By Dana Klosner
(Click on photos to enlarge)
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Craig Mastandrea (L) and Eagle Scout Tim HardyIf you’ve driven down route 347 where it intersects Jericho Turnpike in Commack at the Elwood-Commack Veteran’s Memorial Site you might have noticed something new. A 14 foot wooden carving of an Eagle stands proudly at the site.
It’s all part of Eagle Scout candidate Tim Hardy’s Eagle Scout Project. Tim is a member of Troop 8 in East Northport. The eagle was a donation from family friend Craig Mastandrea, a chain saw artist, who owns Wood Cut Design in Port Jefferson Station.
When Hardy, 15, a sophomore at Commack High School, saw the overgrown state of the Memorial Garden last year he decided he had to do something about it.
He knew he wanted to undertake a landscaping project for his Eagle Scout project. He went to Suffolk County and asked what needed to be done. They suggested the site.
“Everything was overgrown,” Tim Hardy said. “The cannon was rusted and the grass was four feet high.”
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Finished project“He was upset that the site was run-down,” said his mom, Jodi. “He felt it was disrespected. He felt he had to do something to benefit the community.”
Hardy went to work. He got the approval from the Suffolk County Boy Scout Council. Then he sat down with a family friend and drew up a sketch of how the site would look when completed.
Then he got to work getting donations. Two Home Depots donated cement and other necessities. Sherman Williams in Commack donated paint for the cannon and Greenland Nursery in East Northport donated a Maple Tree, some perennials and annuals, Jodi Hardy said.
Hardy also held a car wash and raised $800.
But, perhaps the most noticeable donation came in the form of a 14 foot Eagle carved out of wood.
“We couldn’t come to terms with anything else that would represent America than an Eagle,” Mastandrea said.
“It was an absolute honor to do this project for the Scouts and the Veterans,” he said.
It took 200 hours, five days of work but Tim and his troop made the site beautiful.
“We weeded the site – [with a donated rottotiller], mulched it, trimmed all the hedges, painted the cannon and added benches from Loews,” Tim Hardy said.
“He really put 100% into it,” Jodi Hardy said. “He didn’t cut corners; he did it truly from his heart. For example, he used dark wood chips because he thought they look nicer and he put down a weed barrier to prevent weeds from growing back. He wanted it to look as nice as possible for years to come.”
His hard work was appreciated by the veterans.
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Memorial Day“When I saw the park I thought it was amazing,” said John Gilmartin, Post Sr. Vice Commander of VFW Post 9263 of Elwood-Commack.
Gilmartin said he found out quickly who was responsible for the beautification and wanted to let him know he appreciated the fabulous job he did.
Gilmartin contacted Tim Hardy’s mother and asked him to march in the Memorial Day Parade along with the veterans.
“He had an honorary position for the day,” Gilmartin said.
But that’s not all. Gilmartin introduced Tim Hardy at the podium in front of hundreds of people and told them what he did.
“We wanted him to get recognition,” Gilmartin said. “When people pass by in the future they will see it and we will be very proud.”