A St Catharines scout has earned two new badges after he collected several bags of clothing for an outreach that gives them directly to those in need.
But for Tyler Kudreikis, 13, doing the clothing drive wasn't about earning badges.
The member of the 57th St Catharines Scout Group gathered up jeans, boots, jackets, hats and gloves for Niagara's Mobile Closet to lend a hand - for such is the way of the scout.
"There are a lot of people out there right now who lost a job to Covid. They can't pay the rent anymore, and not get a job either, because they don't have nice clothes," said Tyler in an interview with Thoroldnews.com.
"I feel bad for them. It's a way to help them make it through."
It was after a callout by the group's leader that Tyler made a request that spread through the community, and received the donations that he passed on to the mobile closet staff, that go directly to locations where they find individuals in need who can then receive the donated items right from the source.
An avid member of the scouts, Tyler is eager to be able to reunite with his troop and return out into Niagara's forests and trails, even though he's seen many of therm already.
Before lockdown, Kudreikis completed around 25 hours of hiking in total on several of the major trails as a part of his membership in the scout group.
Now, due to the pandemic, there is no sure way of knowing when the training can resume - but Tyler has an idea of what he might do next.
"I might do another clothing drive in the spring."
His mother Sue Kudreikis said she wasn't surprised over her son's work.
"He wanted to do something big and make an impact, and not do just whatever else is doing," said Sue.
"He has grand ideas and a big heart."
To learn more about Niagara's Mobile Closet and keep up with their activities, visit their Facebook page.
