Ben's Lighthouse Rises Outside Trinity Episcopal Church

The bells rang six o'clock as the 20-foot, custom-built wooden lighthouse outside Trinity Episcopal Church shone its beacon. A crowd of onlookers cheered. Standing in the center of town, Ben's Lighthouse is the result of months of work to honor Ben Wheeler, a young victim of the Dec. 14 shooting who attended the church.

"It's been a long several months in terms of creating this," said Rick Haylon, who spearheaded the effort. "There's a whole community of people behind the creation."

Duane Langenwalter designed and painted the lighthouse, but many church community members contributed in some way -- whether hand-crafting and coloring invitations or creating "forget-me-not" seed packets to bloom in honor of the lives lost in the shooting.

"The beauty of our congregation is, we have been known for years for our youth program," said Haylor. "It's a popular calling card, so we attract people who are interested in caring for our community. There were people chomping at the bit to join and help in any way they could."

The name "Ben's Lighthouse" represents an ongoing Trinity Episcopal Church community outreach program, encompassing workshops, events and community service activities. The lighthouse will shine Saturday for the Lighthouse Festival, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event will also feature appearances by the Coast Guard, a touch tank from the Norwalk Maritime Aquarium and much more. (For a full list of entertainment, see the Ben's Lighthouse website.)

The effort has all grown from an idea hatched by Haylon and supported by the entire church community.

"It was just a tiny seed that grew," said Carla Tischio, the committee's co-chair. "It's not going anywhere."

Haylon agreed. He said the lighthouse will stand in front of the church for around a week before going into storage (it's made of wood and wouldn't withstand rain), but may come out again in the future for events. And the Ben's Lighthouse effort will continue in earnest.

"It's absolutely a grassroots effort; it went from nothing to something very quickly. And it's not going to stop. This is a commitment for years or decades."

"In some way almost everyone's involved," said Trinity Episcopal Church rector Kathie Adams-Shepherd. "For Ben, who we we love, and for his family, who we love -- we wanted to offer children of Newtown something that would bring joy, hope and peace."