Ormond Beach residents spearhead effort to place new sign at Hammock Trace

After moving into their new house in the Hammock Trace neighborhood in Ormond Beach, Jennifer and Paul Tarus heard all sorts of stories from their neighbors about what the community was like decades prior. 

Block parties. Neighbors who were more than just neighbors. Signs at each end of the small subdivision.

One of those signs used to stand at the corner of Roble Lane and Hammock Lane, in the property across from the Taruses. But it had been taken down a long time ago, possibly due to storm damage. The Taruses purchased their home in March 2021, and put a lot of time and effort in upgrading their landscaping. 

“Since we opened up our corner, we figured, ‘Hey, let’s put a sign on this side, just to get the neighborhood going again,” Jennifer Tarus said.

And when Hurricane Ian damaged the sign at the other side of the community, at S. Center Street and Sandy Oaks Boulevard, they figured that allowed for a little bit more creativity.

That’s where Morris Wiener, of Wiener’s Wooden Signs, entered the picture.

A handmade sign

Wiener has been painting for 80 years. Woodworking? Almost just as long, having begun when he was in the fourth grade.

“I just loved it,” Wiener said. “It was something I wanted to do, so I kept on doing it, and mostly, I taught myself.”

His shop is at the Daytona Flea Market. That’s where Jennifer Tarus found him. She had commissioned a sign from him before, for her home after she and her husband moved in. Impressed with his skill, they wondered if he could do a bigger sign.

“So we figured we’d go down there, find out how much it costs, get one started and let other people decide whether or not they wanted to be involved, donate, whatever — several people had already shown interest,” Tarus said.

Without a homeowners association, they were free to explore the idea on their own.

She and her husband gave Wiener an idea of what they were looking for. They described the neighborhood, its location near Central Park, and the many squirrels seen every day.

The sign was a hit with the neighbors, Tarus said.

“They absolutely loved it, and they were really impressed,” she said. “We were joking around, like ‘Breakaway Trails is going to be jealous. Ours is handmade.’”

Hearing that a customer loved the sign he made for them is “the highest form of gratification,” Wiener said. 

“Sometimes I have customers that become emotional when they see the work that I’ve done for them,” Wiener said. “The samples that I show in my shop are very old, and they’re not really representative of the work that I do now, but when they see their sign, that’s part of why I don’t really want to change my samples, because they’re so elated when they see the final product. It’s really an emotional experience.” 

His woodworking also brings joy to his wife, he added.

“She’s so pleased that we can make these people feel really happy with the work that I did,” Wiener said.

Be neighborly

On Feb. 25, the Taruses invited all in the Hammock Trace neighborhood to come to their home to help place the new sign. They cooked hotdogs and hamburgers, played some music and met others in their community.

The sign cost the Taruses about $550. They let their neighbors know that, while donations were appreciated, they weren’t required — they just wanted people to come and have fun.

The Taruses received $382 in donations. The goal wasn’t to make up what they had spent, but rather to raise funds to place a new sign at Sandy Oaks Boulevard to replace the one removed after Hurricane Ian.

Neighbor Patricia Potts said around 25 people came by, and that everybody has been commenting on how nice the sign is. Having lived in the neighborhood for about 21 years, she remembers what the old signs used to look like.

“It was a green rectangle with a little white carved out area that said Hammock Trace on it, and that was it,” Potts said. “It served its purpose for a lot of years, but this I think is outstanding. It looks really super.”

Potts played a role, perhaps unknowingly, in the Taruses’ sign initiative. When the Taruses moved in, she brought them a fruit basket to welcome them to the neighborhood. Then, when the Taruses got a puppy, Potts brought over a basket for the puppy, too. 

“The way she was made us feel like we’ve got to do cute stuff like that for our neighbors,” Tarus said. 

Potts said the Taruses are very friendly and have been eager to lend a hand to her and her husband. She thanked them for their help. 

“And thank you for what you mean for the neighborhood,” Potts said.