Ed Wolf Jr.

"He’s just like his father.”

One could say that about Ed Wolf Jr. and not be far off the mark.

Just like his dad, he is devoted to Boy Scouting.

His father, Ed Sr., was an Eagle Scout and has been associated with scouting, off and on, for more than 25 years.

Ed Jr., 16, has a good chance of matching that number. He has been in scouting since in joined Cub Scout Pack 70 when he was nine. The highly decorated Boy Scout expects to attain Eagle Scout rank by June.

Wolf, a Newtown High School sophomore, was not emulating his father when he chose to become a scout.

"No,” said Ed Jr. "I did it for me.”

He believes scouting has virtues that appeal to his generation.

"It builds good values and character,” he explained. "It adds a whole new level of maturity and leadership skills.”

Two examples of his explanation of scouting’s worth stand out.

First, he saved a young boy’s life during a family white-water rafting trip to the Lehigh Valley last year.

"I saw a kid with a life preserver that was too big for him,” he said. "I warned his parents, but they couldn’t understand me. They were Italian (tourists from Milan, Italy) and there was a language barrier.”

Before anyone realized it, the young boy went swimming in the river.

"He got caught by the current. The water was forcing his too big life preserver above his head,” Ed Jr. recalled.

Noticing what was happening, he jumped into the water, swam over to him and pulled the boy to shore.

"Nobody realized I was saving the kid,” Wolf remembered. "Even my mom didn’t. She saw someone pulling him and didn’t realize it was me.”

There wasn’t any hesitation about undertaking that action by the teen hero.

"I just did what I had to do. The kid was in trouble; I had to go out and get him,” Wolf remarked.

Scouting, though, did contribute to his reflexive behavior.

"Scouting teaches you to use skills that you use in real life,” he commented. "I learned life saving in scouting.”

The second example of scouting’s worth to Wolf was the use he made of his leadership skills in his attempt to reach the rank of Eagle Scout.

"I planned and with the help of St. Rose parents and parishioners, build a playground for their pre-school program,” Wolf said.

Eagle Scout is the highest rank in scouting, but Wolf began reaching highest ranks — Arrow of Light — when he was a Cub Scout.

Currently, he is a Life Scout, the highest Boy Scout rank before Eagle.

Besides NHS activities — he is a member of the drama club, tech club and helps run NTV’s Channel 17 — Wolf is the Chapter Chief, Order of Arrow in the Scatacook District of the Connecticut Yankee Boy Scout Council.

The role of chapter chief entails being the liaison between the council and the district.

"There are abut 100 Cub Scouts in this order in this district,” Wolf reported. "You are selected by your troop (in this case Pack 70) and have to pass an ordeal to join,” he said.

An ordeal?

"It’s a test of camping skills,” Wolf explained. "I don’t know why it’s called that.”

Though Ed Wolf Jr. may have passed his "ordeal,” raising him has been far from an ordeal for his parents.

Both his dad and mom, Barbara, are enormously proud of Ed Jr., the oldest of their three children (brother Nicky is nine, sister Christina, 14) and his accomplishments.

What he does, he does on his own, his father said.