JOURNAL NEWS INDEPENDENT

Bridgewater Boy Scout uses service project to benefit the homeless

Carla Gualdron

Bridgewater Eagle Scout candidate Scott Ledoux, 17, drops off items he collected for homeless families at Father Bill’s Distribution Center in Brockton on Friday, Dec. 28, 2012. Ledoux collected the items as part of his Eagle Scout service project.

Scott Ledoux, a 17-year-old member of Boy Scout Troop 88 in Bridgewater, wanted his Eagle Scout service project to “benefit the community in the long run.”

Ledoux, a Bridgewater resident and junior at Bridgewater-Raynham Regional High School, decided to assist the Conway House in Middleboro, a homeless shelter operated by Father Bill’s & MainSpring. The Conway House provides a supportive environment to homeless families while they seek a permanent home.

“As families transition from this shelter, they are faced with the challenges of setting up a new household to the point where even the most basic supplies are difficult to afford,” said Ledoux. “My project will satisfy their needs of basic supplies.”

Through letters to companies about his service project, Ledoux raised more than $4,000 from Arbella Insurance, HarborOne Credit Union, Bridgewater Savings Bank and other companies. Roche Bros. donated material used in the “transitional kits,” which will be given to families who are moving from the shelter into permanent homes.

The bags included toiletries, cleaning supplies, linens and other items. A total of 48 transitional kits were donated, each averaging a cost of $77.77.

On Friday, Ledoux and his family delivered the donated material to the Conway House and to Father Bill’s Distribution Center in Brockton.

Ledoux said he received a lot of support from his family, friends and younger Scouts.

“It was interesting to see where all of the work goes, and meeting some of the families at the Conway House where the donations will be going to,” said 13-year-old Jeffrey Illsley, a fellow Scout. “Every bit counts and it’s good to be a part of a service group,” he said.

Ledoux, a Boy Scout for the last nine years, currently holds the rank of Life Scout and needs to complete a community service project to earn the Eagle Scout rank.

He said the project helped build character and responsibility.

“A lot of the younger Scouts have to do something like this,” he said, “and I will help them out in the future.”

Carla Gualdron may be reached at cgualdron@enterprisenews.com.