Youngstown gardeners recognized for dazzling blooms brightening up the south side

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) – There are a few displays of flowers shining brightly right now in Youngstown, adding elegance to the neighborhood. The people who planted them hope you see a message coming from the flower bed, and a business hopes you see it just like it did.

Flowers are a perfect gift for love. They can celebrate occasions, or simply improve your mood and make you happy.

Dazzling blooms are providing bright colors across the south side of Youngstown.

“I love doing flowers and making stuff pretty,” Paul Peace said.

Peace has a brilliant display on the corner of Hillman Street and Midlothian Boulevard, which gets plenty of attention.

“‘Hey Paul, that looks nice, that looks nice,’ and, ‘Every time I see you, you’re out here.’ You know? That’s why these flowers like me, you know,” Peace said.

He likes the display, too. The zinnias, petunias and vinca are popping but he prefers the tallest of the flowers.

“That canna lily, that’s the masculine flower. I like her,” Peace said.

Sometimes people are looking at the display closer than you realize.

Murdoch & Sons has been on the south side for over half a century. Dave Murdoch drives around, looking, and recognizes Southside Pride Garden Award winners every year.

“It doesn’t take a lot, though, to pick these places out. You just use your eyeballs and you’ll know when you’ve got a winner or not,” Murdoch said.

“I was so shook up,” Peace said, about winning the award. “It brought a little tear to my eye. I was shook up about that.”

Murdoch recognized three more houses this year. They’re together along Chicago Avenue.

Lashana and Isaac Ford have the biggest display of the neighborhood and, just like Peace’s display, a goal in mind.

“Make Youngstown beautiful again. You have to start somewhere,” Isaac said.

“There ain’t no beauty. You got to make some beauty,” Peace said. “So I kind of like doing it and I kind of do it differently every year, and it takes a lot of work, a lot of time, and I thank God that I’m retired now and now I could do these things.”

See a flower, see a smile. Both places get plenty of people driving by, expressing encouragement and even thanks.

“I hope everybody that comes by, drive by, smile and maybe want to do that to their yard,” Peace said.

They hope the flowers can begin to be a turning point for the south side and maybe the city.

“If everybody just do a little something, you know, it goes a long way,” Isaac said.

The sign for award winners is a small touch. The gardeners were also shocked with the prize that came with it — this year, Murdoch & Sons added $250.

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