Scouts are restoring the Annandale sign
The welcome-to-Annandale sign on Gallows Road will be re-installed as soon as members of Boy Scout Troop 50 finish restoring it.
John Gorak is heading an Eagle Scout project to repaint the sign. It could be completed as early as this Sunday, says John’s mother Kristin Gorak. The sign is located in front of the Exxon station between Holly Road and Luttrell Road.
Matt Sonnen a member of Troop 1532 put up the sign in 2013 for an Eagle project.
Since then, the sign has deteriorated due to weather exposure. “The paint was fading and getting worn out and needed a good refresh,” says his father and former scoutmaster Tom Sonnen. They contacted the company that painted the sign when it was installed and discovered it would cost $1,600 to repaint and weatherproof it.
Troop 1532 solicited donations from area homeowners associations and other sources and launched a GoFundMe campaign. They only raised $515, so the troop reached out to other troops to see if anyone wanted to fix up the sign as an Eagle project.
The sign “really adds to the community and gives Annandale a visible presence,” says Troop 1532 Scoutmaster Bill Huddleston. The scouts put up American flags on the site on Memorial Day and other holidays. “Keeping the sign well maintained reflects the pride we take in our neighborhood, our community, and ourselves,” the GoFundMe site states.
Gorak, a senior at Saint John Paul the Great Catholic High School in Dumfries, agreed to take on the sign for his Eagle project.
He did the research on refurbishing the sign, priced out the materials, and got it approved by Troop 50, which is based at Holy Spirit Catholic Church in Annandale.
Related story: New ‘welcome to Annandale’ sign is an Eagle Scout project
The troop removed the sign so it could be repainted in a controlled environment, Tom Sonnen said. They spent about $150 on exterior paint and other supplies and are repainting it themselves. It won’t be the same as a professional job, but will be good enough, he said.
Meanwhile, Tom Sonnen got the scout leaders together to scrape and repaint the frame, cleaned up the site, and refurbished the landscaping. Leftover funds will be used for mulch and maintenance. Troop 1532 is sponsored by St. Ambrose Knights of Columbus,
Getting the sign installed was a complex project for Matt Sonnen, who was age 13 at the time. He got the idea from the “welcome to Fairfax” sign on Route 50.
Matt worked with VDOT, the Fairfax County public works department, and Supervisor Penny Gross to get permission for the project; designed the sign; and researched funding options. The Annandale Chamber of Commerce approved the image of the Annandale flag on the sign.
At the time, the beltway express lanes were being constructed, and the contractor, Transburban, awarded the project a $5,000 grant.
After graduating from Falls Church High School, Matt went to Liberty University, served in Kuwait in the Air National Guard, and now works as a 911 dispatcher for the Liberty University Police Department.
They need to cut the tree back so it doesn’t hang over the sign, or else the sign will quickly get stained again.
Never saw this sign, but apparently it’s at the Exxon that’s on the corner of Woodburn Road (by the hospital); outside the beltway: the Gallows Road over pass.
I have eaten many times at the “Yummy” kabob restaurant there, so I am sometimes actually on those obscure cross-streets that go around the gas station. And more to the point: I commute from the hospital into Annandale (or sometimes onto the 495 ramp) three days a week. Never noticed a sign…..OK I just found it (with difficulty) on Google Street View. It is almost entirely obscured by a tall bush growing right in front of it!
My main question is: Why will this not be “as good as a professional job”? I don’t know what’s involved, but Scouts are industrious and talented. Nice to see so many troops coming together to do this: organization skills and leadership are the essence of an Eagle Scout project. Thanks, Boys!
What a marvelous, worthwhile project. There are so many lessons learned in this undertaking: coordinating with county officials and other scout troops, raising money, enlisting help to get the job done, determining what is needed in the way of supplies and weather proofing sign. The other lovely aspect to this Eagle Scout project, is it is building on another Eagle Scout’s efforts of nine years ago. We build on tradition!