If you drive through Landing and enjoy the flower baskets and pots that add color and beauty to the end of the lake, there is a dedicated group of volunteers you can thank. You can start with the twenty or so Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, and Cub Scouts who, on Friday night, spent hours at Christine Houtz’s home in Landing, potting the flowers and preparing them for placement. You can also thank the small group of adult volunteers who spent Saturday morning hanging and arranging the flower baskets on the fence at the end of the lake and on the bridge that crosses the train tracks, as well as the pots that brighten up the median. And don’t forget the Landing Fire Department, which has signed on to regularly water the flowers this year. It’s all part of the “Let’s Beautify Landing” project, which has been keeping the southern end of the lake beautiful for the last five years. “It’s become routine for us, and everybody in the area seems to look forward to seeing the flowers,” Houtz said on Saturday. “We’ve got a great group that takes part in making it happen.” Mary-Beth Boughton, a lead organizer of the effort, said the group has a system down pat—which was evident by how quickly several dozen baskets and pots were in place within about 90 minutes on Saturday. For Landing resident Donna Caras, it was her first year of participating. “It really is such a nice thing,” she said. “I’m happy to be a part of it.” This is the first year that the Landing Fire Department is helping with the upkeep through the summer. “My husband Roland, the chief ‘water boy’ for the last few years, is having knee surgery this summer,” Boughton said. “The Fire Department has stepped up to help. Between them and the scouts and the volunteers here today, it’s really such a great community effort.”
Christine and David Houtz hang baskets on the bridge over the train tracks in Landing.
Jeff Bull, who visits from New York to help, and Nick Duque, who lives on the lake, hang flower baskets along the fence at the end of the lake.
Donna Caras and Judy Sabo help hang a flower basket as part of the "Let's Beautify Landing" effort.
The flower baskets and pots were prepared by a group of Landing area Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and Cub Scouts on Friday night.
Mary Galligan and Raymond Billia of Landing hang floral baskets.
American flags were added to the baskets, which will be watered by the Landing Fire Department.
Christine Houtz and Mary-Beth Boughton, the two lead organizers of the "Let's Beautify Landing" project.
Boughton makes sure the flower pots in the median are spaced properly. The flowers will be part of the end-of-lake scenery through the summertime.
