A senior from Helias Catholic High School recently received the highest conservation award in the Boy Scouts of America.
Logan Mathew, an Eagle Scout from Jefferson City's Troop 4, received the Boy Scouts of America Distinguished Conservation Service Award with Silver Honors during a ceremony Sept. 9.
The award is rarely achieved.
"I am proud to be one of just over 1,200 Scouts, Explorers and Venturers to receive this award since 1915," Mathew said.
It took Mathew nearly a year to meet all of the requirements to earn his award.
"I started this back in the summer of 2020, and I finished it at the end of June this year," he said.
Mathew had to earn seven conservation-related merit badges, as well as plan, lead and carry out four conservation projects that contribute to environment improvement on a long-term scale.
His projects included: removing invasive species from nearly five acres of land at the Runge Conservation Nature Center; planning, designing and constructing nine dual-stream recycling bins that will be placed at Greenway Trail and Adrian's Island; planning, organizing and holding two free electronic waste collection events for Jefferson City which collected 376 tube televisions and 35,301 pounds of electronic waste; and planting milkweed and native perennial wildflower seeds at four locations, covering 6,380 square feet, providing habitats and food sources for monarch butterflies and other pollinators.
He also created display boxes that included free milkweed and seed packets, and more than 1,300 seed packets have been dispensed to date.
"I've never been big into conservation. But through the projects, I learned a lot, especially about recycling, invasive species and the pollinators," Mathew said. "It felt really good to have done so much for the environment and the community."