CHESAPEAKE – Chesapeake Elementary students have tended their plants throughout the school year and yesterday they were able to return their hard work to their hometown.

Thursday, May 10, 2001

CHESAPEAKE – Chesapeake Elementary students have tended their plants throughout the school year and yesterday they were able to return their hard work to their hometown.

The elementary students presented village mayor Jimmie Justice with hundreds of flowers raised in the classrooms.

Students received the flower seeds from the American Legion in Chesapeake. Legion trustee John France said the organization received the flowers through the "America, the Beautiful" pilot program based in Washington D.C. France wrote an essay for the pilot program and won 30 dogwood trees, 1,000 packets of flower seeds, and more than $1,000 worth of tulip bulbs.

The elementary students were selected to receive the flower seeds by the American Legion. The students planted the seedlings in Styrofoam cups and placed them in classroom window sills. Elementary school principal Jack Finch said the students tended to their flowers throughout the school year despite some of the troubles of trying to raise flowers through a window.

Finch praised the program saying, "the kids can participate in the community by planting the flowers and watching them grow."

Mayor Jimmie Justice said the flowers will help decorate the park being constructed in the village which is already showing progress.

The park now boast a paved walking trail and lighting has been installed. In June, the village will construct a hexagon-shaped picnic shelter in the center of the park. Justice said he hopes to have playground equipment and park benches installed by August.