Hewitt’s Hopeful Project Will Light Up Lex Park

Charlie Hewitt in his studio. (Instagram photo courtesy of hopeful_project)

A public art project installed on the grounds of the Church of the Ascension in Lexington Park will be unveiled at 7pm Friday, April 19. The public is invited to gather to celebrate the lighting of the Hopeful Project sign.

The installation of the colorful, retro 5’X24′ sign, which showcases the word “hopeful,” is an undertaking of the St. Mary’s County Community Development Corp., St. Mary’s County Arts Council, Church of the Ascension, and many private sponsors.

Created by Charlie Hewitt, a renowned artist who will attend Friday’s ceremony along with his wife, Kate, the Hopeful Project features three-dimensional neon signs installed in communities from Maine to Maryland including one on the grounds of Annmarie Sculpture Garden and Arts Center in Calvert County.

“Hopeful is a word that requires action,” Mr. Hewitt said. “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.

Residents painted the mural that now surrounds the St. Mary’s Health Hub as well as the one that fronts Great Mills Road at the intersection of Shangri-La Drive.

Final touches are being completed on a Tulagi Place mural featuring the history of the commercial area which will soon be spray painted on the south side of the Three Notch Theatre. The St. Mary’s County Department of Recreation and Parks recently unveiled a multiyear Art Park Plan for the Lexington Manor Passive Park.

Through art stories are told, and those stories are most often about pride in one’s community. To that end, among its many other projects such as the annual Great Mills Road cleanup, the community development corporation is now working with residents of Patuxent Park, which surrounds the Church of the Ascension, to enhance social ties and improve communication among neighbors as they explore new opportunities for the county’s first residential subdivision.

Church of the Ascension is at 21641 Great Mills Road in Lexington Park, MD.