Painting job: Scouts brighten room in Long Grove
LONG GROVE, Iowa — The next time members of a Lions Club or senior citizens group meet in the basement of the Long Grove Civic League Community Center, they’ll be in for a surprise.
The previously “blah” room has been brightened up considerably, thanks to the work of about 25 members of Junior Girl Scout Troop 1744 who painted a colorful botanical-themed mural over about 18 feet of the walls.
The project was the brainchild of Lisa Francis-Hoyle, an art teacher and mother of one of the Scouts who thought it would be a good way for the girls to earn their drawing and painting merit badges while also benefiting the community.
To execute the project, Francis-Hoyle drew the botanical scene on graph paper and then had the girls draw a larger grid on the wall — with each quarter-inch paper square becoming 6 by 6 inches on the wall — and transfer the design.
The transfer definitely was the hardest part of the project, said Gabriella “Gaby” Morgan, one of the Scouts.
In addition to getting hands-on experience with transferring and learning the basics of painting, such as the need to do “prep” and clean-up work, the girls explored concepts. Those included the need to choose a universal theme for a public building and considerations of color selection, said Francis-Hoyle, who supervised the project.
All of the girls in the troop are 11- and 12-year-olds from Long Grove and Eldridge.
The mural is the latest of many improvements to the center, which is an old schoolhouse dating to the mid-1800s. The building served as the Long Grove Independent School until 1966, when it closed and students began attending the North Scott district.
The landmark school stood vacant for two years, but then it was purchased by the Civic League, a group formed in 1959 to promote the town through various activities, including the annual Strawberry Festival.
The league moved the school building into town and renovated it for community use. It is used by nonprofit groups for meetings and rented for wedding receptions, graduation parties and showers.
The biggest recent improvement was the renovation of the upstairs restrooms, said Joni Kuehl-Schneider, president of the Civic League. The Scott County Regional Authority provided $12,764, or about half the total cost.
Alma Gaul can be contacted at
(563) 383-2324 or agaul@qctimes.com. Comment on this story at qctimes.com.