The final step to becoming an Eagle Scout, the highest rank for a Boy Scout of America, is to plan and complete a service project. For his project, local Boy Scout Tony Lindholm, age 18, designed a mud kitchen for St. David’s Center’s new nature-based playground.
“Tony was a client at St. David’s Center and wanted to give back, which is a wonderful thing,” says Susan Berdahl, associate director of community relations at St. David’s Center.
Lindholm’s idea is simple: Play outside! “Nowadays, most young people, myself included, when we have spare time, we are obsessed with observing some technology form,” says Lindholm. He adds, “The concept of a mud kitchen [is so] the children get a feel for what it’s like to work with natural materials like sand, mud and clay.”
He hopes that nature play will help children develop creativity and excel in areas like math, science and engineering.
Lindholm, now studying at Normandale Community College in Bloomington, hopes to one day be a marine biologist or oceanographer.
Playground is open to the public on weekends and after 6 p.m. on weekdays; free admission.
