“Hopeful is a word that requires action. " - Charlie Hewitt, Artist
“Hopeful is a word that requires action. " - Charlie Hewitt, Artist
“Hopeful is a word that requires action. " - Charlie Hewitt, Artist
“Hopeful is a word that requires action. " - Charlie Hewitt, Artist
“Hopeful is a word that requires action. " - Charlie Hewitt, Artist
“Hopeful is a word that requires action. " - Charlie Hewitt, Artist
About the Hopeful Project
History
In early spring 2022, St. Mary’s CDC was approached by a small group of local art-lovers with an idea: how to bring hope to Lexington Park.
This idea of “hope” began with Charlie Hewitt, a renowned artist from St. Mary’s County who now lives in Portland, Maine, and his nationwide “Hopeful Project”. Charlie’s artwork. Mr. Hewitt explains that “Hopeful is a word that requires action. It asks us to be part of something that is greater than ourselves. It is a commitment to believing in a better future for us, our children, and our fellow citizens.”
The Hopeful Project is about far more than just another sign in Lexington Park. It’s about community engagement, the use of art to inspire, and leveraging opportunities for the future of the Great Mills Road community.
Objective
The intention of the project is to strengthen the Lexington Park community and feel the hopefulness that the art’s message suggests, through the same ways the artist felt motivated to initiate his project: unity, togetherness, and optimism!
The CDC mission is to ensure community engagement and to provide ways for Lexington Park residents to find hope within their own neighborhoods. We recognize the importance of meaningful community-based action ahead of introducing the art and set forth to determine what that might look like.
Currently, the CDC partnering with Department of Public Works and Transportation by collecting surveys from Patuxent Homes Residents in our Speed Intervention Initiative. Click below to learn more!
Our Partners
Without the help from our generous donors and partners, this project would not be possible.
We would like to thank Katie Watts, Helen Daugherty, Jane Rowe, Todd Morgan, Margaret Sawyer, Tom Watts, Mark Cullison, and St. Mary’s County Arts Council for their donations and pledges to St. Mary’s CDC. We are also proud to be working towards 100% involvement of our board of directors in fundraising for both the public art and outreach portions of the project.
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