Charlie C. ’24 completed the tremendous accomplishment of earning his Eagle Scout with Boy Scout Troop #849 this summer. His project, which was to create mosquito traps and tick drags for the DuPage County Forest Preserve, helped the organization test for West Nile Virus.
The complex project was created in part with the help of a template but one of the reasons Charlie liked it was that he had to use some creativity to make it work.
“I had to keep the bugs contained without killing them so they could be tested, and also make sure it was weatherproof so it could stay out all summer,” he said. Creating the prototype took over a year and then they created duplicates with his Troop: about a dozen mosquito traps and a handful of tick drags.
Charlie has been in Cub and Boy Scouts since kindergarten.
“I like meeting new people and seeing friends every week at the different activities,” he said, adding that he appreciates the commitment that comes with it. “Eagle Scout is something you have to earn, and we do so many things you wouldn’t do anywhere else.”