The Beacon Hill Civic Association and the Beacon Hill Garden Club are partnering to launch “Beautify Beacon Hill” – a new program that transforms the annual window-box contest into a year-round competition.
“The window-box contest only focuses on one period of time, but we’re making it a four-season program,” said MaryLee Halpin, executive director of the Civic Association. “’Beautify Beacon Hill’ is designed conceptually to keep people engaged in beautification.”
Beginning this month, the Civic Association will accept photo submissions for entry in the contest, and once a season, The Beacon Hill Times, the program’s media sponsor, will publish images of the award-winning window boxes in a contest judged by the Garden Club. Readers are then asked to contact the Civic Association to help identify whom the plantings belong to, and once a quarter, the Times will publish a list of the names of winners, who will also be recognized on the Civic Association’s and Garden Club’s Web sites. In the fall, the Civic Association joins the Garden Club to honor winners from each season at a reception, which replaces the annual Window Box Competition awards ceremony.
Sharon Malt, president of the Garden Club, describes the year-round competition as an “evolving” process.
“It’s something we’ve been thinking about for a while because the Window Box Competition isn’t as not as vigorous as we’d like,” Malt said, “and now with tools like iPhones, people can be on-the-spot reporters.”
Photos for submission in “Beautify Beacon Hill” can be sent via e-mail to [email protected].