LP_111518

8 | November 15, 2018 | The Lockport Legend news
lockportlegend.com
Lockport teen assists Nativity House for Eagle Scout project
Jacquelyn Schlabach
Assistant Editor
Danny Donohue put considerable
time and effort into
his Eagle Scout project, but
what he got out of it was so
much more.
“I think it’s important to
help the community because
it’s giving back,” the 15-yearold
Lockport resident said.
“You can also take a personal
note of it, so if I grow older
I would be able to go back
and show my kids and other
family members what I’ve
accomplished in my life.”
On Oct. 27, Danny and
22 Boy Scouts and 12 adults
came together for one common
goal: help Nativity
House in Lockport. The nonprofit
organization, “serves
as a house of hospitality for
first-time mothers” and provides
a “mothering community
offering education and
support for all mothers,” according
to its website.
For Donohue’s Eagle
Scout project through Troop
63, he decided to rebuild a
bridge on the Nativity House
property, and clear out about
half an acre of land that was
infested and overgrown.
“So we thought that would
be a good idea to give them a
good area where [the mothers]
could maybe even read a
book or relax, so we thought
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that would be good so we
replaced that bridge leading
on to the island and then we
also cleared about half an
acre of land,” Donohue said.
There’s a steep drop
off onto the land from the
23-foot-long bridge, so as
part of the project, Donohue
decided to make steps using
large landscaping stones.
Railings were also added to
the bridge, along with solar
lights on the posts to guide
people when it gets dark.
To purchase all of the supplies,
Donohue raised about
$900 through donations
from family and friends. The
detailed project required him
to get lumber for the bridge,
bolts, stones, gravel and
the solar lights. Those who
came to help also brought
extra tools to assist in the
landscaping efforts.
His father, Dan, also
helped his son by providing
guidance throughout the 200
hours it took Danny to plan
and execute the project from
start to finish since the end
of July.
“It honestly was mostly
him,” Dan said. “The whole
point of the Eagle project is
for him to run that, so I was
just there to support him on
those days when he didn’t
feel like doing something,
just give him a little push to
get out there. A couple times
we had to go back for measurements
and then help him
try to see some of the bigger
problems that may appear,
you know.”
The biggest benefits Dan
sees of his son doing a project
like this to become an
Eagle Scout is that he learns
how to troubleshoot, and be
active in giving back to the
community.
“The boys actually go
through to see a project from
beginning to end and owning
that, and really taking ownership
of it from the initial
walk through, meeting with
people, whoever that may
be, setting up plans, getting
approvals, talking to people
within the Scout organization,
make sure this qualifies
and everything is going to be
good to go,” Dan said.
Looking back at when
Danny first started Scouts
in first grade to now being a
sophomore at St. Lawrence
High School in Burbank,
his father couldn’t be more
proud.
“It’s just phenomenal, the
amount of skills that he’s
learned,” Dan said. “He’s
found out through Scouts
that he enjoys welding, he
enjoys lots of sports that he
would have found out on
his own but there’s other
activities that he’s learned
that ‘hey, I like this,’ where
Lockport resident Danny
Donohue (right) and his
father Dan Donohue pose
for a photo on the bridge
that Danny built for his
Eagle Scout project. Photo
submitted
he never would have had the
opportunity if he wasn’t in
Scouts.”
Besides the many skills
Danny has acquired over the
years through Boys Scouts,
his final project in the troop
has brought him pride and
joy.
“I personally got out of
this project pride and joy of
trying to build this,” Danny
said. “It was a big challenge
I feel like trying to come
up with plans and going to
build this bridge and clear
some land for these people.
So I felt a lot of accomplishment
and kind of a challenge
to help others and to lead
people and make sure I was
able to work under pressure
with the obstacles and other
things that I ran into.”
He hopes that the pride
and joy he felt completing
the project is also felt by
those who can now enjoy it
at Nativity House.
“I feel like everybody really
enjoyed the project and
that it was for a very good
cause,” Danny said. “The
owners I feel like they really,
really enjoyed the project
and I hope that the women
there at the Nativity House
really enjoy it as well.”