After four years in the making, the dedication ceremony of the Honorable Leo J. Lydon Memorial Clock on Saturday morning was a celebration that Savin Hill residents, elected officials, and friends and family of the late judge shared in gratefully.

Columbia-Savin Hill Civic Association president Anne Riley and the Friends of Leo Lydon Committee surmounted numerous obstacles on the way to the installation of the landmark timepiece in its place of prominence in front of the Savin Hill T station from where it can be seen from the Southeast Expressway.

Those involved in the installation process for the black-and- silver clock encountered a series of engineering, structural, electrical, and mechanical hindrances along the way, including one calling for a sidewalk “bump-out.”

“We were determined to get the clock up. Even though it was going to take us longer and some people did get impatient, we tried to let folks know that we wanted it right,”said Riley, a Savin Hill native.

Fundraising, including a buy-a-brick initiative, began in 2007 but the clock wasn’t erected until last January. The project was marked by the cooperation and collaboration among state agencies like MassDOT and the MBTA and with help from Mayor Tom Menino— who cut the ribbon at Saturday’s dedication ceremony— Senator Jack Hart, and Representative Marty Walsh, among others.

The dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremonies were well attended. “I think that it’s reflective of the people’s respect for Leo,” Riley said.

Father Joe White of St. Vincent’s parish in South Boston offered a benediction, highlighting the judge’s dedication to faith, family, and friends. Other speakers reflected on the mantra in his life and on his dedication to Dorchester youth.

Judge Lydon was a coach, mentor and helped local youth to prepare for confirmation while serving the commonwealth as an attorney in the juvenile court system and later as an Associate Justice of the Massachusetts Trial Court, a promotion he received shortly before his death in a car accident in 2000.

“He wasn’t a judge to put people in jail,” said Rep. Marty Walsh. “He was a judge to try and help kids that made a mistake and put them on the right path.”

Sen. Hart, who used to play basketball regularly with Lydon at the Boston Athletic Club, described him as “just an ordinary man here in Savin Hill that did extraordinary things.”

Lydon’s brother Gerard regaled the crowd with his brother’s uncommon journey to law school. After his UMass Boston law professor saw his grades and suggested he look into something else, Lydon received help from two Savin Hill neighbors – his friend Danny Ryan and the attorney Steve Mulcahy. Ryan stood by his friend and enlisted the help of Mulcahy, who encouraged Lydon to write to the Suffolk Law admissions director offering his services in any capacity he could. The correspondence paid off and Lydon eventually earned his law degree from the school that had initially rejected his application.

Lydon shared that story at his swearing-in ceremony and offered the same help to his family, friends, and many others throughout his life.

“That was from what he learned here in this community,” Gerard noted. “Leo loved Savin Hill. He loved being from this community. He loved the friendships and the memories that go back so long and the inter-neighborhood battles on every athletic field or court you could find that all helped shape the character of this neighborhood.”