'He Sets An Example': Colorado Teen Becomes Eagle Scout Of The Year

By Jeff Todd

DENVER (CBS4) - Michael Ankner just wanted to help the Native American community, but in the process, he became an Eagle Scout and got a prestigious scholarship for having the best community service project in the country.

"It took a lot of effort and a lot of work from many of the different volunteers who worked on the project with me," Ankner said. "I've known for a while that I wanted to do a project with some sort of Native American group."

He reached out to the Denver Indian Center, Inc. a few years ago and asked what he could do. They didn't expect three major projects to be completed with a price tag near $20,000.

Ankner led a team that built a fire pit, installed art around a revamped community kiosk, and planted new vegetation along the face of the building.

"He sets an example not just for our youth, but also for a lot of our older people who follow through," said Rick Waters, the Co-Executive Director of the Denver Indian center, Inc.

"I think my project went above and beyond a lot of other projects, but I couldn't have done it without the donors," Anker said.

More than 35 businesses helped Ankner with donations and the project involved almost 1,400 volunteer hours.

The American Legion awarded Ankner the Eagle Scout of the year and awarded him a $10,000 scholarship.

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"I felt like I sort of had an opportunity and a duty to really help this community. I felt it was the right thing to do," Ankner said.

Jeff Todd joined the CBS4 team in 2011 covering the Western Slope in the Mountain Newsroom. Since 2015 he's been working across the Front Range in the Denver Headquarters. Follow him on Twitter @CBS4Jeff.