Centre Hall man takes lawn decor to new and patriotic levels

The grass isn’t always greener on the other side.

In fact, you’ll find that with 48 cans of spray paint in your back pocket, you can pretty much make your lawn any color under the rainbow.

For James Button, it was always going to come down to something a little more patriotic.

“I love America. I get up in the morning and bleed red, white and blue,” Button said.

In the event that you doubt his sincerity, try taking an evening drive past the corner of Neff Road and General Potter Highway in Centre Hall, where Button’s house rests at the top of a tall hill.

In honor of the Fourth of July holiday, the space has been rededicated to nearly 50-foot-wide rendition of the American flag with all the standard stars and stripes in tact.

Button and long-time friend Doug Mansell cleaned out the spray paint aisles at Home Depot and Lowe’s in order to top a similar project they undertook this time last year at only half the size.

“It takes a lot of patience,” Mansell said.

Button and Mansell used string to mark the outline of their flag. Almost five hours and a few dozen cans of spray paint later, they were done.

They even made sure to include all 50 stars, even if folks driving by were unlikely to get the chance to count for themselves.

“Nobody would have known the difference at 60 miles an hour,” Button said.

Button has loved America since the second grade, when he asked his teacher how to spell the word “Marine.”

After four years and two tours of Afghanistan, he’s back in Centre Hall, watching passing motorists honk and shoot iPhone photos of his lawn.

“If people are driving by and videotaping, you know you’re doing something right,” Button said.

This story was originally published July 2, 2017 at 8:23 PM with the headline "Centre Hall man takes lawn decor to new and patriotic levels."