By India Cox
Contributing writer

What is 12x25x10 feet and contains talons and feathers … and very large eyes? It is the Area Rehabers Klub’s (ARK) new flight pen, and it was built by Nick Long as his Eagle Scout project. Dedicated Saturday, November 1, at a backyard cookout, the flight pen is currently home to two Red-Shouldered hawks and a pair of Barred owls.

“It took more than 250 hours,” Nick said. (For comparison, the average project consumes about 50 hours.) Nine of his fellow scouts from Troop 832 also helped ~ Travis Long, Brenton Morris, Nick Cassidy, Dondre Tucker, Daniel Tucker, Joey Lembo, Alex Umbehant, Zac Hunt and Kyle Fisher. “As a toddler, Nick had a fascination with dinosaurs, so it wasn’t surprising that Nick wanted his Eagle Scout project to benefit raptors,” added Nick’s mother, Dawn.

“The night the Longs came over to discuss the project, I had to rush out to gather the Cedar Waxwings that had become stuck in the ‘glue’ on the capitol,” said Amber Kimmich, ARK’s songbird/raptor rehabber. “My husband, Bill, took over for me and, with the Longs, hatched the idea of a flight pen this size.”

Two years ago, Nick started raising money for his Eagle Scout project by collecting and selling aluminum and copper. He also accepted a donation of lumber from Conner Industries. Nick is a freshman at Powhatan High School.

ARK is funded by donations, so the gift of such magnitude is tremendous. “A mature Red-Shouldered hawk requires about $60 a month for food; a Barred owl about $80,” said Amber. “With those types of typical expenses, we probably would never have been able to finance such a fine flight pen.”

To make a donation to ARK or want more information, please contact ARK at (804) 598-8380 or visit our website at www.arkofva.org.