Life-sized Declaration of Independence hangs outside of Sharon Town Hall

It reminds us that freedom is never just about individual rights; it is also about mutual responsibility.
—Deborah Moore

SHARON – Resident and activist Deborah Moore is the driving force behind a new 7-by-9-foot reproduction of the Declaration of Independence that hangs between the main columns at Town Hall. The banner will serve as a patriotic backdrop during Saturday’s festivities, which will include a complete reading of the founding document at the Hotchkiss Library.

The Fourth of July is often a time for fireworks and celebrations, Moore said, but this year has placed a welcome focus on history. With a background in public art, she thought the installation would be a positive way to celebrate the country’s founding principles.

“When I brought the idea to the 250th planning committee and the historical society, they loved it,” Moore said. The initial idea was to march in the Memorial Day parade with the banner to promote the Fourth of July celebrations, but the rain cancellation forced other plans.

The banner will hang at Town Hall until after July 4.

Moore said the Declaration’s final passages, which focus on people working toward a common goal in unity, inspired her to conceive of the large-scale public display.

“It reminds us that freedom is never just about individual rights; it is also about mutual responsibility,” she said. “The signers tied their futures together, accepting real risk for the sake of a common good larger than any one person.”

Publicly standing up for what we believe in is a right, Moore said, and one she sees exercised on the local level.

Moore said she has seen that spirit firsthand through community efforts such as the Save Sharon Hospital campaign, which successfully blocked Nuvance Health from shutting down the hospital’s labor and delivery unit. Moore and others worked for years to rally support from residents, local politicians and lawmakers.

“That’s true democracy in motion,” she said.

Moore said she sees the same commitment reflected in other ways throughout Sharon.

“It can show up in quieter acts of service,” she said, citing neighbors volunteering on boards and commissions, parents and educators working for better schools, residents turning out to vote, and looking out for one another.

“The founders’ final words are not relics of 1776; they are an ongoing invitation to treat citizenship as a shared pledge — one we renew together, day by day, close to home.”