The center courtyard at Autumn Care of Suffolk now has a place for residents and their families to sit and enjoy the fresh air. Boy Scout Anthony Lau built, painted and donated four benches and a table to the facility on Saturday.

Anthony, 16, is working towards becoming an Eagle Scout, which requires planning and completing a service project for a religious institution, community or a school. Choosing Autumn Care of Suffolk was easy, because he had a personal connection.

“I chose here because my great nana was here, and I saw that there wasn’t a lot of seating,” Anthony said. “Benches are a good place to spend time together.”

When Anthony and his family arrived, those at Autumn Care were not expecting how grand the gift was going to be. There were four benches, each with a specific theme, and a table with bench seats.

“We are very excited about this, and we didn’t realize just how beautifully they would have been decorated,” said Tameika Cross, activities director at Autumn Care. “We are forever grateful.”

The benches are dedicated to Anthony’s grandmother, the U.S. military, the Boy Scouts and their church.

This project was not an easy one, and it’s been a long time in the making for both Anthony and for Autumn Care.

“We reached out to Autumn Care about a year ago just to see if they could use the benches,” said Anthony’s mother, Mary Lau.

Anthony worked with his family to raise the money needed for the project, and they did so by selling tamales. Lowes and All About Graphics donated the wood for the benches and all of the graphics affixed to the benches.

Anthony has taken a lot of pride in this project, and he is more than happy with the finished product.

“I’m very happy to give them the benches, and I’m happy to be able to do it,” Anthony said.

While he was happy to do the project, it wasn’t an easy challenge. With the help of his family, Anthony had to build every one of the benches, and the design was particularly difficult.

“The design of the bench was difficult, but I think it will help them last a long time,” Anthony said.

Anthony still has a lot of work to do before he becomes an Eagle Scout, but he should be having a ceremony sometime in February.