Sandburg Eagle Receives Help For Eagle Scout Project

Carl Sandburg High School sophomore Finn Rafferty is on a mission to help pay tribute to veterans at the annual “Flags In” ceremony held at the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery. Each Memorial Day, volunteers place a flag at each of the 51,000 gravesites on the grounds.

Rafferty plans to weld 100 tools that will puncture a hole in the ground, which can still be hard and brittle in May, so when the flags are placed in the ground they do not break. He and his fellow Troop 318 scouts will make and learn to weld the tools themselves.

The Orland Park Law Enforcement Organization presented the Sandburg Eagle with a check for $200 for supplies. Organization President and Orland Park Support Service Supervisor Rich Miller, Vice President and Evidence Clerk Glen Jelley, Sandburg School Resource Office Chuck Kirby, and Therapy Dog Leo were all on hand for the donation ceremony.

Miller said, “There is no better cause. It’s an excellent idea and fits perfectly with our organization's mission to promote positive change in the community.”

Rafferty has volunteered at the “Flags In” project for about 10 years and has a lot of family buried there, including his great-grandfather, great-stepgrandfather, great uncle, and great step-father.

He hopes to make the tools over the course of two days; each tool is estimated to cost about $7.

“There are a lot of take-aways from this project,” Rafferty said. Through his efforts, Rafferty hopes not only to earn the Eagle Scout honor, the project is a salute to service, and his fellow troop members will learn to weld and earn their welding badge too, he added.

He has received a lot of community support for the project. Any leftover funds will be donated to the cemetery’s Wreaths Across America, which places holiday wreaths at the gravesites of veterans around Christmas.

Check out Service Dog Leo's Instagram page at oppd_k9_Leo