A longtime member of George Merrick Troop 7 in Coral Gables, Justin Herrera has attained the Eagle Scout rank — the highest achievement in the Boy Scouts.
More remarkable than this accomplishment, bestowed on Justin by the Tequesta District Eagle Board in February, is how the 18-year-old went about becoming an Eagle Scout.
Justin, who lives with his mother, uncle and grandmother in West Miami, joined the Boy Scouts when he was around 11.
“We went to a festival in Coral Gables and met a Boy Scout. He told me it was fun, my mom asked me if I wanted to join, and I signed up,” Justin said.
Several years later, at the South Florida Emerald Society’s St. Patrick’s Day Festival in March 2011, Justin and Troop 7 Scoutmaster Robin Burr were approached by Chuck Harty, a South Miami resident and a former Scoutmaster of Troop 336 (South Miami / Pinecrest).
“He started talking to us about disheveled concrete markers. He wanted to restore them back to their original beauty,” recalled Ms. Burr. “They were crooked, faded and couldn’t be read anymore. The city didn’t have the manpower to do it all.”
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