Meet Kaelan Harkey

Whiz Kid's name: Kaelan Harkey

Whiz Kid's age: 12

Whiz Kid's school: Harrison Preparatory School

Whiz Kid's accomplishment: Kaelan, a Boy Scout in Lakewood’s Troop 436, built an arched bridge over the creek in Puyallup’s Wildwood Park with his fellow Scouts as his Eagle Scout project. The bridge ensures that people can safely cross the creek without slipping in the mud and further eroding the bank.

Kaelan solicited donations for all of the materials – from lumber to cement – from local businesses. He and his crew cleared the trail of overgrowth, transplanted ferns and ground cover, shored up the creek bank with boulders and spread 1.5 tons of gravel over the steep path leading to the bridge.

Whiz Kid's key to awesomeness: Last weekend, with his family and friends in attendance, Kaelan dedicated the bridge he spearheaded the building of to the memory of his grandmother. As a child, he used to play around and in the creek at the Puyallup park, and said that he wanted to give something in return.

“The Parks Department couldn’t have been happier with the bridge and the children (in the park) couldn’t wait to cross over,” said his father, David.

Kaelan, who will formally be eligible for Eagle Scout rank in January, said that his favorite part of working toward Scouting’s highest rank is having the opportunity to develop and exercise his leadership abilities.

“The easiest part has been back-country cooking,” he added, “and the most difficult has been some of the paperwork along the way!”

Kaelan’s other interests include robotics, choir, chess, photography and playing the bass guitar and piano.