Durham Eagle Scout builds anti-gun violence garden to promote peace

DURHAM, N.C. (WTVD) -- Campus Hills Park in Durham is home to a new community project thanks to a local teenager.

Jordan High School senior Shaun Deardorff recently put the final touches on a project called the World Peace Garden and Anti-Gun Violence and Terrorism Memorial.

Deardorff built the garden, with help from volunteers, for an Eagle Scout Project, with the hope and goal of "creating a stance to counteract violent events that have occurred in our nation and internationally." This also includes incidents of local gun violence.

"It is surreal to see my project set in stone now," Deardorff said. "It has been 4 years in the making...but hard work pays off."

The project is located in front of the community center at Campus Hills Park and made of a 15-foot 3D peace sign constructed with aluminum. Deardorff said part of the structure symbolizes the four corners of Earth.

Behind Deardorff's memorial stands a 6-foot peace pole with the message "May Peace Prevail on Earth" translated in 7 different languages (Cherokee, Russian, Vietnamese, Japanese, German, Arabic and English).

"Love is the cornerstone of peace," Deardorff said. In his own words, Deardorff said of his project that it, "encapsulates and epitomizes optimism and hope, and provides a meaningful place for peace contemplation and is a catalyst for change."