Monroeville church gets 'little library' box, mobile prayer circle from resident scout

John Buzzie of Monroeville would often tell his son, Anthony, that great moments create great opportunities.

The pair would share a lot of those moments as part of Monroeville Boy Scout Troop 143, with the elder as scout master and junior earning badges by the sash full.

Both have been involved in scouting for about a decade, and the two end their journey this year.

“What a great thing for me and him to do,” John Buzzie said. “We only have 20-some people (in the troop). They experience a lot of different things that a lot of people don’t get to do.”

Hillcrest United Presbyterian Church in Monroeville would provide them with another great opportunity to serve the community as host of an Eagle Scout project.

Anthony Buzzie, 17, created a Little Library box packed with free books, as well as a mobile prayer circle.

Parishioners at 1622 James St. gave monetary donations and books toward the project, which began last winter and was completed in March.

“I live real close by, and I attended a lot of programs here as a youth,” Anthony said. “It gave so much to me as a kid, so it would be a good experience to give something back to the church that had been so influential in my younger life.”

Boy Scouts officials reviewed the project and awarded the Gateway High School senior the organization’s highest honor in July.

The mobile prayer circle, a painted 20-square-foot tarp, has yet to make its debut due to the covid-19 pandemic.

Church board President John Moucheron said they plan to dedicate the circle, also referred to as a prayer labyrinth, sometime in October.

“Some of them are laid in stone and take a lot of work,” Moucheron said about prayer labyrinths. “Some of them are very expensive. We wanted to have something we could transport and move around to an outdoor area or indoors.”

The book box was formally recognized by Little Free Library, a nonprofit that promotes neighborhood book exchanges. There are more than 100,000 registered book-sharing boxes in 108 countries worldwide, according to the charity’s website.

“People can’t get enough books,” Moucheron said. “This is a way to help out with the community. Come down, take a book, leave a book. It’s an outreach to everybody. We had some of these things in mind for many years, but we just don’t have the manpower to go ahead and do it.

“This is something nice. We’re appreciating the youth in service to the community. That’s something you need more of.”

Moucheron said there is a book donation box at the church to keep the library stocked, and the congregation is considering making book marks.

Little Free Library offers numerous blueprints to build such creations. However, the Buzzies made their own design.

“We looked at the ones online, and they were just too small,” John Buzzie said. “We wanted to make it so it’s going to last forever.”

The box is made out of treated lumber about three-feet wide and two-feet deep protected from the elements by a shingled roof. It sits on a six-foot wooden post near the entrance road of the church.

“It was an interesting experience,” Anthony said. “It was very educational. I had never put something like this together. I definitely learned a lot of things while I was working (with my dad).”

Some of Anthony’s high school friends assisted with the construction, painted the prayer circle and did some landscaping around the church.

Anthony thanked everyone who was involved with his project for their support, and encouraged more people to participate in Boy Scouts.

Information on how to do that is available at beascout.scouting.org.