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When it came time for 15-year-old Kensington resident Stephen Lippencott to decide on an Eagle Project, one of the requirements for a Boy Scout to earn scouting's highest rank, he wanted to find a way to make a meaningful contribution by giving back to the community.

So Lippencott, a scout with Troop 8 in Bethesda, looked to his own experience for inspiration. He was born with bi-lateral club feet and underwent his first major corrective surgery when he was only seven months old. He underwent another surgery last year at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. During his rehabilitation there, his family stayed in the nearby Ronald McDonald House, a facility that houses families of children receiving hospital treatment.

"They were wonderful," he said. "They provided for every comfort and need."

Lippencott wanted to find a similar facility in his own community for which to perform community service for his Eagle Project, but the closest Ronald McDonald House is in Baltimore, he said.

Right here, nearly in his own backyard, he found the Children's Inn at the National Institutes of Health, a place for families to stay while their children receive treatment from NIH.

For his project, Lippencott decided to beautify an outdoor area at the Inn by replanting garden planters, creating a flower garden and donating a set of new Adirondack chairs. He started to solicit donations for the project by asking for help from family, friends, community members, local businesses and the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Rotary Club. He ended up raising more than $3,500 in funds and in-kind donations. Lippencott was able to cover the plantings, provide 19 chairs and three wooden side tables.

"It was amazing," he said. "Even in this recession it was amazing. Very few people turned me down. That was the big surprise. It was very exciting. It was humbling and gratifying."

In addition to raising the money and the donations, Lippencott organized two work days with more than 40 volunteers to do the planting and assemble the chairs.

After all the work was done, Lippencott said he learned a lesson: "Truthfully, an Eagle Project really isn't focused on the achievement or the Scout accomplishing it," he wrote in an e-mail to The Gazette. "It's really about serving others and giving folks a chance to serve others."

What are you thankful for?

As Thanksgiving approaches, The Gazette wants to know what you are thankful for this year. Let us know in 50 words or less what you will be giving thanks for this holiday season. E-mail ssiegel@gazette.net with your stories or thoughts, even photos. Some replies will be printed in this column in the next couple of weeks.

A painting in a park

One corner of Bethesda got a little brighter this fall, thanks to a new mural recently completed by Bethesda artist Judy Gilbert Levy. The mural is located in Caroline Freeland Park at the corner of Arlington Road and Elm Street.

The colorful mural depicts a garden scene and is painted on the side of a garage wall that juts into the park.

The garage owners commissioned the mural, which was stared at the end of September and finished at the end of October.

According to Gilbert Levy, the owners of the garage are Jane Austen fans, so she used Chawton Cottage, where the author once lived, as inspiration.

"I'd asked the owners of the garage if they had any preferences for what would be in the mural, and they liked the idea of a flower garden," Gilbert Levy wrote in an e-mail to The Gazette. "We definitely wanted to add some bright, happy color to the park."

And while Chawton Cottage may have been the starting-point, Gilbert Levy added some local touches, such as the distinctly American sunflowers.

"While I was painting the mural, people would stop by and talk — the Wheaton terrier in the scene belongs to Elyse Harrison and Michael Belisle, and was with them one day when they stopped by while I was painting," Gilbert Levy wrote. "Children in the park really liked the dog, so I added the poodle and the cat on top of the fence so there would be more animals to look at. The house owners have some tennis players in the family, and the racquets leaning against the wall were painted for them. I didn't have a set idea of what the mural would look like when I started with just a sky and a sunflower, so I just let the painting evolve as I worked on it."

During the month Gilbert Levy worked on the mural, librarians, nannies, children playing in the park, homeless people and neighbors all stopped by to chat, she said.

"The response has been really positive!"

Reunite with old playmates

Don't miss the Garrett Park Elementary School Reunion on Nov. 28, which will bring together everyone from the class of 1893 to 1998 — in other words, everyone 21 years old and up. Registration can be done at the event for $30. The reunion will be from 1 to 4 p.m. at Garrett Park Elementary School, 4810 Oxford St., in Garrett Park. Organizers are asking alumni to bring a dessert or appetizer to share, and memories too, of course. This will be the first reunion since 1994 and the last before the old building gets completely torn down. Student docents will be on hand to explain the new school design. For more information, visit www.gpesef.org.

This column is for you. Share your good news! Feel free to send press releases and news tips. For Bethesda and Chevy Chase items, contact Stephanie Siegel via e-mail at ssiegel@gazette.net or phone at 301-280-3006. For Kensington and Garrett Park items, contact Jen Beasley via e-mail at jbeasley@gazette.net or phone at 301-280-3005. You can also send information by fax at 301-670-7183, or snail mail at 9030 Comprint Court, Gaithersburg, MD 20877.

Play some more!

The monthly Games and Tea will be held Thursday in Garrett Park for the young and young at heart to battle at Monopoly, Battleship or Canasta and anything else they like. Bring a buddy and a favorite game and join fellow Garrett Parkers in a little friendly competition from 1:30 to 4 p.m. at the Town Hall, 10814 Kenilworth Ave. in Garrett Park. For a ride or for questions, call Elizabeth in the town office, 301-933-7488.

Four decades of

crafty fundraising

The 43rd annual Garrett Park Nursery School Craft Fair and Bake Sale will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday and Sunday at the Garret Park Town Hall, 10814 Kenilworth Ave., Garrett Park. The event serves as a primary fundraiser for the school and admission is free. All proceeds will go to support the nursery school. Tables from more than 100 local artists and craftsmen, as well as home-made baked goods will be on sale. For more information, contact Summer ElHayek at summerelhayek@

hotmail.com, or visit the school's Web site at www.garrettparknursery

school.org

‘Fried Green Tomatoes'

still in season

The classic film about family and murder in rural Georgia, "Fried Green Tomatoes" will air at 6:30 p.m., today at the Kensington Park Library, 4201 Knowles Ave. The film, starring Kathy Bates and Mary Stuart Masterson, was nominated for two Oscars in 1991, and is showing as part of the library's series showcasing films based on books. The screenplay was adapted by the book's author, Fannie Flagg.

Tellebrate in Kensington

The annual "Tellebration," an international festival celebrating storytelling, will come to Kensington Saturday when local storytellers Laura J. Bobrow, Ralph Chatham, Margaret Chatham, Jane Dorfman, Bill Mayhew, Ellouise Schoettler and Anne Sheldon gather to spin yarns at 7:30 at the Kensington Row Bookshop, 3786 Howard Ave. in Kensington. The free event is best for adults and is sponsored by the storytelling group Voices in the Glen.

Art and architecture

at Penn Place

Susan St. George of Kensington is the artist currently being featured in Garrett Park's "Art at Penn Place" series of free local art exhibits. St. Georges specializes in the watercolor paintings of buildings, particularly churches, schools and religious institutions. To see her stuff, visit the second floor of Penn Place, 4600 Waverly Ave. in Garrett Park.

Volunteers needed

for Turkey Chase

More than 200 volunteers are needed to help out with the 27th annual Bethesda Chevy Chase YMCA Turkey Chase, a 10K race, two-mile fun run/walk and a 50-meter Tot Trot for kids 8 and under. The race, which takes place on Thanksgiving morning, supports the YMCA's Youth and Family Services, YMCA Bethesda-Chevy Chase and the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Rotary Club Foundation.

Prior to the race, volunteers are needed to help with packet pick up, packet stuffing and placing no-parking signs. On race day, Nov. 26, volunteers are needed from 7:15-9:30 a.m. to help with set up, staffing water stops, bag check and a variety of other tasks. For information about volunteering, contact Tracy Miller at 301-530-3725 or at tracy.miller@ymcadc.org. For more information about the race, go to www.turkeychase.com.

Wanted: Tech savvy seniors

The Jewish Council for the Aging is looking for a few good seniors to teach, coach and assist other seniors learning to use computers at JCA SeniorTech Centers.

Classes include basic introduction, word processing, graphics, desktop publishing, photography, Internet and e-mail.

Centers are located at Asbury Methodist Village, the Bethesda Vital Living Center and B'nai Shalom of Olney. For more information contact Dana Hirsch at 240-395-0916 or e-mail dhirsch@accessjca.org.