A New Place to Gather, Create, and Reflect at Bower Center for the Arts
Bower Center for the Arts is proud to announce the completion of a meaningful new addition: the Lucille Hoback Boggess Outdoor Learning Center and Community Gathering Space. This beautiful, 440-square-foot deck offers a new setting for creativity, education, connection, and reflection, and stands as a tribute to one of Bedford County’s most beloved leaders.
This space is far more than a structure. It is a vibrant extension of the Center’s mission to enrich lives through the arts. It was designed as an additional space to host programs such their heARTworks programs, art classes, summer camps, and community events. It will also serve as the new home for Bower’s Free Little Art Gallery and Library as well as a welcoming space for creativity, inspiration, and conversation among Bedford residents and visitors.
The vision for the deck began with Executive Director Susan Martin, who dreamed of expanding the Center’s programming into the outdoors. Thanks to the generous grant funding provided by Norfolk Southern and the Weyerhaeuser Foundation, and under the leadership of Board Member Des Black, the project came to life quickly. A crew of dedicated volunteers logged 246 hours, completing this project is just 28 workdays.
In recognition of a life devoted to public service, advocacy, and community-building, the space is named in honor of Lucille Hoback Boggess. Lucille’s trailblazing service to Bedford began in 1948 and includes historic milestones such as becoming the first woman elected to office in Bedford County in 1967 and serving on the Board of Supervisors. She played a pivotal role in bringing the National D-Day Memorial to Bedford and has long been admired for her wisdom, humility, and fierce dedication to lifting up others, especially women and future generations.
Thanks to her family’s generous sponsorship, Lucille’s name now graces a space that will nurture learning, creativity, and community for years to come. As her son John Boggess shared, Lucille is deeply honored to lend her name to a space that embodies the values she holds dear, and she’s “quite happy to now have a perfect perch to keep an eye on the Courthouse.”
An official Ribbon Cutting and Dedication Ceremony will be held on Saturday, June 28 starting at 11:00am. The public is invited to explore the space, meet the volunteers who made it happen, and hear remarks from those who helped to bring this project to life. While Lucille will not be in attendance due to mobility limitations, members of her family will be present on her behalf.