St. Hubert's Rescue Dogs Will Benefit From Chatham Eagle Scout Dog Walking Path Project

CHATHAM, NJ — A love of animals and willingness to help in the community were two things that sparked Lucine Basralian’s recent Eagle Scout project to help St. Hubert’s Animal Welfare Center.

She designed and led a team of fellow scouts to build a boardwalk bridging a path on the dog walking trail for rescue dogs that are being rehabilitated to learn to enjoy the outdoors.

Basralian is a part of BSA Troop 280, founded in 2019, of which her mother Daniele is the Scoutmaster and her father, Joseph, the Committee Chair.

Scouting has become an activity the entire family has enjoyed together, said Lucine Basralian, 13. Her family first liked hiking together, but then she became involved in Cub Scouts in 2018, something her younger brother Joey remains involved with.

In 2019 though, there became an opportunity to found an all-girls BSA Troop, which Basralian, a student at Chatham Middle School and her older sister Chatham High Schooler Azniv Basralian - who recently worked on her Eagle project too to build a half-mile Shunpike hiking trail - became a part of.

Daniele Basralian said the group with BSA Troop 280 started with about five girls and now has about 40. The group’s website indicates girls between the ages 11 to 17 are welcome to become a part of the troop, if they’re from Chatham, Berkeley Heights, Gillette, Madison, Morristown, New Providence and Summit.

She was amazed at the dedication of her daughter Lucine’s project for St. Hubert’s, which she said involved “a lot of leadership developing,” as Lucine Basralian looked at examples of how to build the boardwalk, which she did in six separate segments with pressure-treated lumber in six-foot lengths, fortified underneath with rebar.

The funds raised through with the troop’s “First Day Walk” on New Year’s Day, helped to fundraise for the materials, while Basralian and a team of girls from the troop built the boardwalk segments, then placed them over a previously muddy path.

St. Hubert’s will use the path to take the dogs - who haven’t had many outdoor experiences - to sensory gardens; and kids will additionally use the path during summer camp.

Basralian, who has a dog at home, a pet hedgehog and an aquarium said executing and completing the project was “an amazing experience.”

When she’s not scouting, she also fences year-round with Integrity Fencing Studio and is on the swim team at the Colony Pool Club.

“Scouting has been such a positive space for me,” she said, explaining how she enjoys going to every event.

Her parents said she has never missed a meeting or campout in the more than 32 months Troop 280 has been in existence. She is its first Senior Patrol Leader, who has already earned 42 Merit Badges.

St Hubert’s gave Lucine Basralian a special shout out on their Facebook Page, thanking her for designing and constructing the boardwalk.

“The boardwalk is a great addition to the trail as it covers a section that can become very muddy during heavy rain,” they wrote.

For more information about BSA Troop 280, visit www.bsatroop280chathamnj.com.

Questions or comments about this story? Have a news tip? Contact me at:jennifer.miller@patch.com.