Youth raises funds to finish project for Eagle Scout badge

PENDLETON — It’s not known how many coins and accompanying hopes have been tossed the way of the old stone wishing well at Pendleton Falls Park through the decades.
One thing park leaders are sure of, though, is the folkloric structure, believed to have been built in the early 1900s, is hardly used or visited anymore.
Carson Wright, 17, a senior at Pendleton Heights High School, would like that to change.

[sc:text-divider text-divider-title=”Story continues below gallery” ]

His hope it to see the vintage wishing well restored so people will want to visit it.
And he plans to work hard to make this wish come true.
Wright, a Boy Scout since age 6 and member of local Troop 232, is taking on the task of refurbishing the old wishing well to help him earn his Eagle Scout badge.
Wright is working with the park to get the project done. Park officials have already donated $1,250 to help him fix up the well, but he needs another $1,250 to complete the task.
Eagle Scout is the highest rank attainable in the Boy Scouts of America scouting program, according to scouting.org. Since its founding, almost 2.5 million scouts have earned the Eagle Scout badge. Requirements include at least 21 other merit badges and the completion of a community-based project.
Wright said his Eagle Scout project has been a journey, one involving research, planning, presentations and, finally, implementation.
He’s in that final phase of the project now, the part where the physical work gets done.
His plans include the addition of stepping stones leading up to the existing cylindrical stone base as well as a new roof with supports.
Wright has already added the new steps leading to the well, which included some excavation and concrete work, but he still needs funds for supplies to construct and install the roof.
Once he raises the rest of the money, he plans to build the roof indoors and install it during the winter.
The old wishing well sits near the pond with the lighthouse, between the pond and the creek, and will be a nice attraction in the park, Wright said.
Wright reached out to park leaders to let them know he was looking for an Eagle Scout project; he said he was thrilled when park Superintendent Ron Barnhart came up with the idea of fixing up the wishing well.
“We’re hoping to have it look as close as possible to some of the old photos we have of the old wishing well back in the day,” Barnhart said.
For many Boy Scouts, earning the Eagle Scout rank comes at the end of a long scouting career and is considered a major milestone for those who can achieve the honor.
Wright said he thinks it should be the goal of every Boy Scout to obtain the ran of Eagle Scout.
“It’s kind of like the peak of your scouting career,” he said.
After graduation from high school, Wright plans to attend Purdue University, where he hopes to study aerospace engineering.
Anyone who wants to donate money to the project can email him at [email protected] or call 765-606-6673.