Scouts enjoy dig in dirt for a cause - and fun
Eight-year-old boys love to play in the dirt. They may not think so much about feeding the hungry, but if it involves getting their clothes dirty, they're all for it.
Randi Bennett of Buffalo Grove and Kathryn Kaczkowski of Arlington Heights suspected as much, which is why they got the seven boys in Den 1, Cub Scout Pack 119, into the Plant a Row program.
Back in the spring, the two moms re-served a plot in Arlington Heights Community Garden, near Palatine Road and Kennicott, and picked up free seeds donated to the Daily Herald's Plant a Row for the Hungry campaign.
On planting day, in May, they showed the boys what to plant where, and which plants needed more space.
"The boys had a lot of fun during the planting. They got really dirty," says Rich Kaczkowski, Kathryn's husband. Rich and Marty Festenstein of Arlington Heights both act as den leaders for Den 1, which operates out of Riley School in Arlington Heights.
Then the hard part started. Two boys handled watering and weeding duty each week. That means their parents, who had to drive them, deserve a lot of the credit in this goodwill effort.
The boys, all third-graders, usually showed up every other day -until the hot weather struck.
"They learned about responsibility. When it was 95 degrees out, it was clear that one day without water would kill all the plants," Rich Kaczkowski says.
"But nothing has died from lack of water. We had some insect problems, which we got under control with sprays."
They've already harvested carrots and radishes, and are working on picking tomatoes, zucchini and peppers. By the end of the season, they will donate between 200 and 300 pounds of produce to the Wheeling Township Office, to be distributed to needy families. That will include beans and pumpkins, too.
"The boys were amazed at how quickly things grew, and the ones not used to gardening were amazed at how much of a yield we got," Rich Kaczkowski says.
"They liked to watch how the plot transformed from bare earth into a jungle."
The adult leaders started the project with the idea of teaching the themes of responsibility and community service. They think it worked.
"Everybody in our group views this as a success," Rich Kaczkowski relates. "The boys realize they're helping other people, even though they haven't met the recipients.
Patrick Baumhart, Alex Festenstein, Alex Kaczkowski and Timothy Malik of Arlington Heights, and Mackenzie Bennett, Corey Pecoraro and Daniel Strauss of Buffalo Grove are the Cub Scouts who participated. They got some help with planting from Michael Carter of Arlington Heights, a fifth-grade Cub Scout who belongs to a different den.
Even though the boys spent all summer raising veggies, Rich Kaczkowski is not convinced they're ready to give up Big Macs in favor of bell peppers.
The parents could spend the winter urging, "Eat your vegetables, kids!" just as loud as ever.