Eagle Scouts Break Ground on Kings Garden in Haddonfield

What do you get when you have a vacant construction lot, add 24 tons of rock, eight yards of top soil, 240 two by fours, 108 two by sixes and 40 boy scouts?  You get the King’s Garden.

Haddonfield Troop 64 will begin pounding garden frames, dumping rock and racking soil tomorrow, Saturday morning at Christ the King Regional School in Haddonfield, according to a news release.

The vegetable garden, consisting of nine raised vegetable beds, is the creation of Haddonfield boy scout Jack Schwab. The Saint Joseph’s Preparatory junior is in the last stages of attaining his final merit badge, giving him eagle scout status. The extensive service project requires a scout to plan, organize, lead and manage the entire undertaking.

“I chose to this project to give something back to both my Alma mater, Christ the King, and the Boy Scouts, two organizations that have given me so much,” Schwab said.

The second phase of the King’s Garden begins on Earth Day on April 22, when students will plant flowers and vegetables. The children will weed, water and ultimately harvest their gardens. Principal, Anne Hartman says the King’s Garden provides many lessons for her students.

“This Eagle Scout project is an outdoor environmental learning center for everyone to enjoy," she said. "It benefits our students, by letting them get their hands dirty and watch the fruits of their labor grow, and cultivates our Christian values by sharing with the community.”