Eagle Scout Owl Project

by Caylie Howard | photos courtesy of Ginger and Andy Eads

It is a prestigious honor to hold the title of Eagle Scout. Only 4% of Boy Scouts achieve this impressive rank, and Flower Mound local Addison Eads is among that select group of young men.

“In order to become an Eagle Scout, you have to go through several ranks. Eagle Scouts are the highest rank.” Addison says.

In order to become an Eagle Scout, you have to choose and earn 21 badges out of a selection of 135 badges.

One of the steps of earning this title is completing each individual’s Eagle Scout Project. Each project has to provide a beneficial, long-term improvement for the Troop’s community and must be completed by the Scout’s 18th birthday. Once the Scout has selected their project, they must first present it and have it approved by the Troop and the Eagle Board of Review Committee.

Addison’s mom, Ginger, saw a friend’s post on Facebook about an owl house she had received as a Christmas gift. She showed Addison the picture because she thought it was a thoughtful gift idea. Once Addison saw the photograph, the idea for his Eagle Scout project came to life. Addison presented the idea of building owl houses around the community to his parents. His dad, Andy, suggested the idea of installing them in parks around the Town of Flower Mound. Addison quickly began to do research on owl houses to see if they belong in our local community. He quickly realized the amazing benefits of these majestic animals. “Owls provide countless amounts of positive things for the environment,” Addison says. “They provide a natural form of pest control as opposed to poison, and these houses help grow their population by replacing the loss of habitat.”

After completing his research, Addison developed a report and presented his idea to his fellow Scouts in Troop 709, the reviewer of Eagle Scouts projects, Mark Gmitro, and the Town Manager of Flower Mound. All of them were excited about this environmental, sustainable project.

The Troop began building the owl houses on January 26, 2020 and installed them on February 8, 2020. “We installed them in over 10 Flower Mound parks,” Addison says.

There were 15 owl houses in total, and to raise money for the supplies, Addison had the idea of having people sponsor an owl house. For $40, a person could buy an owl house or even sponsor a house in the honor or memory of someone else. Each house would have a plaque attached, displayed with the sponsor’s name. Addison made a video to post on Facebook with an example of these owl houses, asking for sponsors.

“They were sold out in minutes,” Addison says. While installing the houses, the Troop tagged every owl house with a number so that the Town of Flower Mound and local bird enthusiasts could trace them. On the day that the houses were installed, they filmed a video of each house to let the sponsor know of the location so that they could check on them. “One sponsor, Jeri Harwell, bought an owl house in honor of her late husband, Wess Harwell, and was excited to see where it was installed,” Addison says.

So far, there have been two owl sightings in the houses since they have been installed. One of the sightings happened to be in Addison’s grandparent’s backyard. “My grandpa texted me that morning that they had been eating breakfast in their backyard. He thought he saw something weird, so he took his camera and zoomed in with his lens. That’s when he saw that it was an owl in the house, and he took a picture.” Addison recalls.

The benefits of these houses for the community are abundant. Not only can these houses be a year-round habitat for the owls to get out of the weather, but they can also be used as a nesting box. While these houses have provided great benefits for the birds, they have also brought a great sense of community and excitement to the Town of Flower Mound. It’s truly safe to say that Addison Eads’ Eagle Scout project will benefit our local community for many generations of owls in the years to come.