Eagle Scout from Mount Prospect awarded annual memorial scholarship

Eagle Scout James Jensen of Troop 155 at St. Raymond's Church in Mount Prospect has been selected as the 2010 winner of the Northwest Suburban Council's Joseph DiLullo Scholarship.

The $500 award is granted to an Eagle Scout from the Northwest suburbs annually by Margaret and Mario DiLullo in memory of their Eagle Scout son, Joseph, who died unexpectedly in December 1988.

Jensen's qualifications included the merits of his Boy Scout-required Eagle Service Project, academics, community service and Scouting leadership skills.

His Eagle Scout service project involved the restoration of the St. Joseph Garden at St. Raymond. The project required three weekends and involved Jensen securing donations of wood, paint, garden materials and numerous plants and bushes from the gardens of St. Raymond parishioners.

Jensen logged 90 hours on the project, and another 30 Scouts he organized logged 198 hours while aiding in the clearing and landscaping the garden area, repositioning a 5-foot high statue of St. Raymond, installing benches and refurbishing a service entrance door and window at the back of the garden.

Jensen, a St. Viator graduate, took advance placement courses, was a member of the swim team, captain of the water polo team and a member of the band. He also served on the church worship committee and was a mentor to handicapped youth, aiding them to become altar servers.

In Scouting, he held various leadership posts, including Senior Patrol Leader. For the past five years, he staffed the Council's National Youth Leadership Training Program. Now, he is attending the University of Illinois, where he is majoring in chemical engineering.

“The competition was very stiff this year,” Mario DiLullo said. “However, James' essays reflected positively his strong leadership skills in several Scouting activities and a faith journey of being a balanced young man. And his academic record speaks for itself.”