Few undertakings for teenagers equal the dedication and proactive attitude needed to become an Eagle Scout.

So what does it take to be the Eagle Scout of the year in your part of the state? How about the entire state – or the nation?

Wyatt Hahn, a junior at Hutchinson High School, has a pretty good idea. He has been the American Legion Third District Eagle Scout of the Year for the past two years. This year, he was selected as the state’s Eagle Scout, and now he’s in the running for the national honor.

“The first time the Boy Scouts came and talked to me was first grade. I was hooked,” Hahn said. “It’s been a really good experience and my scoutmaster (Brett Rasmussen of Hutchinson) has been awesome. Most kids in Boy Scouts don’t last too long, but our troop has a high number of Eagle Scouts, which I think has a lot to do with our scoutmaster.”

The Boy Scouts helped build on Hahn’s natural interest in hunting and fishing, which grew into a love of conservation. The project that earned him the Eagle Scout Badge was north of Hutchinson.

“I built a wood shed for (Cedar Lake Conservation Club),” Hahn said. “They were looking for a spot to store firewood and the Boy Scouts use the cabin to camp every once and awhile, so I thought it would be a good idea to build out there so we could use it, and members there as well.”

For his William T. Hornaday Badge, which recognizes Boy Scouts who complete projects that help with the area’s natural resources, he undertook a project to reconstruct squirrel habitat.

Hahn said his interest in wildlife preservation comes, in part, due to having seen people not obeying the law while hunting and fishing. Conservation, he said, gives him a way of giving back, and pushing the needle back in the other direction.

Hahn said American Legion Post 96 member Roger Olson “has been an inspiration for me to do things through the Legion the last couple of years,” Hahn said.

Not all of his volunteer work has been out in nature.

Hutchinson’s Oakland Cemetery has a digital grid map that shows the names of veterans and their plots on the property. Hahn is in the process of taking that system, and applying it elsewhere.

“I’m moving on to do that at St. A’s and Peace (cemeteries),” Hahn said. “I’m going to try and use the (Oakland) system to keep it all the same format throughout the cemeteries. I would hope it will be done by the end of summer.”

The goal of the undertaking, Hahn said, is to make it easier for visitors to find the graves of veterans, and for those who deliver flags on Memorial Day to find every veteran.

“My grandparents both served in the Army. It’s a way to give back to them, too,” Hahn said.

Hahn has one more year of high school left. He’s already started taking post-secondary enrollment option classes, and plans to load up on more through Ridgewater College. He previously considered pursuing engineering in college, but is now considering dentistry and oral surgery.

“I’m thinking something with biology. I don’t know where yet,” he said. “I’ve always been interested in the health sciences area.”

His college destination isn’t decided yet, but he’s looking at the University of Minnesota-Duluth as an option, as that would connect him to the university’s dentistry program. As the state American Legion Third District Eagle Scout of the Year, he has already been granted $1,000 toward those goals. If he wins at the national level, that means another $10,000. For now, he’s done all he can toward the award.

“Now it’s just waiting,” he said.