For junior Charlie Lewy, the opportunity to become an Eagle Scout is a “big honor.” 

Lewy has been a part of the Boy Scout community since he was in the first grade and has been looking forward to becoming an Eagle Scout for much of this time. 

In order to reach the rank of Eagle Scout one must complete certain requirements — one of those being a service project. 

“To be an Eagle Scout you not only have to complete a list of merit badges that are required to earn the Eagle Scout rank, but this project is like one of the biggest things you can do to earn your Eagle rank,” Lewy said. “And that’s why this Eagle rank is such a big honor because not many people get it because it’s such a big job.” 

For his Eagle Scout project Lewy plans to combine his passions for theatrical arts with service in an Open Mic Night food and hygiene drive that will take place on Friday, Sept. 29, at 7 p.m.

This project is important to Lewy because service is prevalent in many parts of his life and holds great value to him. “[It] is something that La Salle is all about,” he said. “And as a Boy Scout, it’s been ingrained in our community’s culture for decades.”

Lewy is working with The Society of St. Vincent de Paul — specifically the St. Rita parish chapter — who will be the beneficiary of the donation drive. At the moment they are looking for nonperishable food items such as rice, pasta, cookies, crackers, and condiments. 

How the drive will work is that people who plan to attend the Open Mic Night are encouraged to drop off donations to the bins located at the front office, either throughout the week before the event or bring their donations directly to the event. These donations will act as a “ticket” to get into the show. 

“I think it’s going to be mainly [an] honors system, but I won’t turn down anyone that doesn’t bring a donation,” Lewy said. “But it is strongly encouraged.” 

The event will follow a similar structure to previous Open Mic Nights. Afterwards, the donations will be gathered to be counted and put in cars to be transported to St. Vincent de Paul the next day. 

Lewy’s goal for the donation drive is to collect at least 100 donations. 

While this is Lewy’s Eagle Scout project, he is thankful to have the help of “many, many, many, many people,” he said. He names teachers Mr. Michael Shelton and Mr. Otto Wild, as well as Director of Service Ms. Olyvia Conner, and his mom as some of those people. 

Originally, this fundraiser was supposed to happen last spring, but a few roadblocks — such as AP testing and the spring musical — created conflicting scheduling issues, causing Lewy to postpone it. 

“I wasn’t going to give up though,” Lewy said. 

Lewy is much happier with the progression of the fundraiser this year and the fact that more people can be involved this time. He is also grateful that there is less of a need to rush now with less activities happening at the same time. 

Although Lewy recognizes that the Eagle Scout process is a challenge, he regards it as a great opportunity — one that he recommends to anyone who is interested in becoming an Eagle Scout themselves. 

Since the age limit of the Boy Scouts is 18, Lewy’s time as a member will soon be over. However, even if he does not decide to stay involved as an adult leader, he will be taking the many lessons he has learned with him for the rest of his life. 

“Scouting has taught me a lot about serving others and I’m definitely going to use those principles in my later life,” Lewy said.