Community News

Scout spearheads Wantagh Library beautification

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Boy Scout John Vaiano, far right, supervised his fellow Scouts who planted bushes and flowers outside the Wantagh Public Library on June 11.
Boy Scout John Vaiano, far right, supervised his fellow Scouts who planted bushes and flowers outside the Wantagh Public Library on June 11.
Andrew Hackmack/Herald

After watching his older brother give back to the community, John Vaiano wanted to do the same. The 13-year-old Boy Scout from Troop 96 recently completed a community service project at the Wantagh Public Library, beautifying the flower bed adjacent to the parking lot.

“I noticed this area was bare,” he said, explaining that it only had a few flowers that had been planted by Girl Scouts. John incorporated those plantings — daisies that were put in by Daisies — into his larger-scale project.

Last year, John’s brother, Stephen, cleaned up the grounds of the Wantagh Memorial Congregational Church and installed a flag pole there. He became and Eagle Scout earlier this year.

John also wants to earn his Eagle rank, which is scouting’s highest honor, and a community service project is part of the requirement. “I want to be an Eagle Scout because I look up to my brother,” he said. “After seeing his [project], it was really inspiring for me to do mine.”

Since he comes to the library a lot, he reached out to see if any work needed to be done. Library officials identified the flower bed against the building, which runs alongside the sidewalk leading from the parking lot to the back entrance.

He purchased more than 50 plants including golden threads and Pacific blues. A weeping Norway spruce served as the centerpiece. John drew up his plans, deciding where each plant would go. For example, he said plants that did better in the shade went under the building’s overhang.

John went to a library Board of Trustees meeting with his plans, and they approved it. On June 11, John and about 40 volunteers gathered outside the library and did all the planting. He spent the day supervising his workers, making sure everyone had a task to do and making sure they were doing it right.

“I believe this is going to help the library bring in more people,” John said. He noted that the library is a community center where people come together. When he was younger, he used to take part in the summer reading program, and now visits the library a few times a month to do research for school. He will be entering ninth grade in the fall.

John raised about $1,300 for his project, which helped fund the purchase of the all the plants, mulch, dirt and other supplies. He hosted a fundraiser at Burger King, and also received donations from a few of his teachers at Wantagh Middle School.

Library Director Maggie Marino said it was great to see so many young people from the community working hard that Saturday, and appreciates their effort. She said that the finished project looks great, and thanked John for taking the initiative.

Marino added that Scouts have done many projects for the library over the years, including a reading garden that was built by Girl Scouts. “The Scouts have changed the entire look of the building,” she said. “My staff and I often talk about what a great community this is, and what a great spirit of volunteerism there is.”