When Caroline Dalton, a Mansfield resident and longtime member of the Hockomock Area YMCA, was deciding on her Eagle Scout project, she wanted the project to have a lasting, positive impact on her community.
Dalton is part of Troop 51 of Mansfield and is the second female Mansfield resident to have earned her Eagle Scout. She is also a member of the Hockomock Area YMCA, recalling, “I was a summer camper and gymnastics participant at the Invensys Foxboro Branch. My YMCA involvement deepened when I became a competitive swimmer on the HAY Lightning Swim Team, a lifeguard, and a participant in the HAY Harmony program there.”
Dalton inquired at the Y and was connected to Dawn DaCosta, teen and community outreach director, who leads the Educational Garden at the Hurley Family Branch in North Attleborough. The Educational Garden is part of the Y’s summer programming where campers enjoy many garden classes and activities, such as making salsa, pickle jars, and tomato sauce to name a few, as well as hands-on learning activities such as birdhouse making and tending to the gardens throughout the summer months.
“When I met with Dawn and she explained the Educational Garden and what it meant to the community, I really wanted to help her and this program,” said Dalton.
Throughout 2024, Dalton strategized and worked on the project, in coordination with her Troop as well as the Y’s facilities team. The Eagle Scout project has provided the Y’s Educational Garden with much-needed fencing to keep wildlife away from the crops. Dalton installed 165 linear feet of fencing around eight raised garden beds.
“Because of this amazing project and Caroline’s commitment and dedication, our Y will now have three seasons of gardening, not just the 12 weeks of summer camp,” said DaCosta. “We’re able to start spring vegetable planting in April. And we’ll have the ability to do service projects in the springtime for garden preparation and in the summer, we’ll have more farm to table projects which is really exciting.”
Additionally, the project enhanced the garden with an excavation station where children can explore and play. A large sunshade was also installed to provide a much-needed cooling area and shade for the harvest table where summer classes will be held.
“I’m grateful to the many local businesses who contributed monetary donations as well as supplies,” said Dalton. “It meant a great deal to me to have the support of Troop 51 Mansfield members, Order of the Arrow members, and many friends and family. They gave up their free time on weekends to help me complete the manual labor of the project.”
Dalton will attend Westfield State University in the Fall where she will be part of the swim team and will major in Elementary Education.
For information on service learning projects at the Y’s Education Garden this spring or summer, or for those interested in future Eagle Scout projects at the Hockomock Area YMCA, please contact Dawn DaCosta at 508-643-5270 or dawnd@hockymca.org.