Covid didn’t stop these Eagle Scouts

The Covid pandemic has been hard for everyone, and that includes members of Scout troops. Nevertheless, three members of Troop 1525, all graduating seniors, were recognized for attaining Eagle Scout status at a Court of Honor ceremony June 7.

“We are calling them Covid Eagles because they all performed their service projects and earned their Eagle rank during Covid,” says Phillip Sandino, scoutmaster of Troop 1525, which is based at St. Matthews United Methodist Church in Annandale.

Tommy Nguyen, a graduate of Woodson High School, removed invasive plant species at the South Run Rec Center for his Eagle project.

Another Woodson graduate, Cal Sandino, built storage cubbies for the Canterbury Woods Swim Club.

For his Eagle project, Robinson Secondary School graduate Ike Walker built bat boxes for his community pool to attract bats as a way to reduce the mosquito population.

Troop 1525 adopted new procedures during the past two years due to Covid, Sandino said. Meetings were held online, and the troop focused on individual activities, such as hiking and biking.

Instead of two-day camping trips, the scouts stayed local, exploring such places as Rock Creek Park and Roosevelt Island. And because carpooling wasn’t allowed, parents had to drive the boys to activities individually.