Cupid of Cedar Avenue creates "Scranton is Romantic" heart campaign for Valentine's Day
Jan. 24—In a word, descriptions of Scranton have ranged from electric to hardscrabble to Scrantastic.
Resident Frank Dubas wants to add another one: romantic. He plans to pack his nonprofit Garden of Cedar community lot at 715 Cedar Ave. with 1,000 red hearts for a pre-Valentine's Day, public open house on Feb. 11, before Valentine's Day on Feb. 14."The theme is 'Scranton is Romantic.' And if it's not, it should be," Dubas said.
The Garden of Cedar is a nonprofit community-garden project Dubas began to create a few years ago. The garden really started taking shape this past fall with construction of meandering, raised planting beds and stamped concrete walkways.
The last pour of concrete at the rear of the site occurred Friday. Finishing touches will follow, toward having community planting start this spring.
Dubas wants the property to be a neighborhood attraction all year and has started in that direction. He put out skeletons for Halloween and lights on trees for Christmas and had a visit from Santa Claus last month. Next up will be a sea of red hearts leading up to Valentine's Day.
"I want to convey a positive image for Valentine's Day," Dubas said. "I want to make a statement. I want people to see this is a year-round" attraction.
Playing cupid on Cedar Avenue, Dubas in recent days has "planted" in the raised beds a few dozen plastic hearts inscribed with first names of sweethearts and messages.
He will keep going as he gets more requests of names to be written in marker on the hearts. The 1,000 hearts were donated and there is no cost to have a heart inscribed. Requests to have a heart inscribed and placed on the lot can be emailed to gardenofcedar@gmail.com. Requesters should provide first names only for inscriptions. Students in art classes at Scranton High School and West Scranton High School are writing the names and messages on the hearts, Dubas said. He has delivered to art teachers at the schools batches of blank hearts and lists of names or messages to be inscribed. The teachers have students write out the hearts and get the batches back to Dubas for placement at the lot.
One of the hearts placed at the lot is for Dubas and his sweetheart, his wife of over 44 years, and says, "Frank + Marigrace" and has a heart pierced with an arrow. Some of the other heart messages include: "Roger & Jane Happy Anniversary," "50 Years Together John & Lydia," and "Scranton Tomorrow #lovelocal."
The Garden of Cedar's open house on Feb. 11 will be held from 2-4 p.m., during which visitors who requested hearts will be encouraged to find them. Gertrude Hawk Chocolates also donated 240 Valentine chocolate bars to be given out at the open house, Dubas said.
Though unfinished, the Garden of Cedar already has made a positive impact, said neighbor Arielle Wall, who lives next door.
"I think it's amazing what he's doing for the community here. It's bringing the community together," Wall said. "I think it's so nice. It's such a great idea."
She asked Dubas to put out a heart for her and her boyfriend, Manny Saldana. A delighted Dubas was happy to oblige.
"That's why this is fun," Dubas said. "We are going to see red here. A lot of red."
Contact the writer:
jlockwood@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9100 x5185; @jlockwoodTT on Twitter.