Hours before his senior prom Saturday, Trent Norris, 17, was covered in dirt and sweat as he planted trees and shrubs around a gazebo at Hospice of Southern Kentucky.
Starting last fall, Norris, a junior at Greenwood High School, took on the task of bringing a gazebo and landscaping to the hospice facility on Scottsville Road as his final project before becoming an Eagle Scout in Troop 202.
“It’s the last big step,” Norris said.
Norris chose the project after he saw how much comfort hospice was able to provide his grandfather, Frank Eads, before he succumbed to cancer.
“Hospice really helped him out in his last few days, so I thought I should give back to them,” Norris said.
“They’re wonderful people,” added Glenda Eads, Norris’ grandmother and Frank Eads’ wife.
After his grandfather died in his home in Alabama while under the care of a hospice worker, Glenda Eads moved to Kentucky to be near her daughter and Norris’ mother, Bonita Norris.
“I’m so proud of him,” Eads said, as she sat in the gazebo and watched her grandson work Saturday morning.
Norris started the project by requesting donations from family, friends and local businesses. The response surprised him.
“It was actually really good, better than I expected,” Norris said.
By February, after five months of fundraising, Norris had enough money on hand to purchase the gazebo. After securing the gazebo, Norris went about soliciting donations for the landscaping. Donations from businesses and individuals helped Norris get all he needed.
“Alvaton Nursery really helped us out,” Norris said.
Saturday’s work should be more than enough for Norris to reach the 100-hour service requirement to become an Eagle Scout. He was joined by fellow Boy Scout Troop 202 members, many of whom were working toward becoming Eagle Scouts or had recently earned the title.
Norris’ uncle, Neil Sherer, was on hand Saturday morning. Sherer, of Carbon Hill, Ala., is a former Boy Scout troop leader, and said Norris’ ascension to Eagle Scout is no small deal.
“You can’t just say, ‘I want to be an Eagle Scout,’ ” Sherer said.
Norris was hoping to finish the landscaping before having to get ready for prom, but said he would be back to finish the project over the course of several afternoons if necessary. Future plans for the gazebo include paving bricks families can donate on behalf of loved ones, which would be used to create a pathway leading to the gazebo.
