NIH Record - National Institutes of Health

High School Student Gives Back

Children play on top of life-size, outdoor chess board
Executive Child Development Center gets new chess/checkerboard activity. Boy Scout Troop 461 Bethesda, led by Caleb Bowers, former ECDC student, built the game for children at the center.

Who says, “You can’t go home again?” Not Caleb Bowers. A local high school student, Bowers attended the NIH Executive Child Development Center from infancy through elementary school. He recently returned to the center to build a large outdoor chess/checkerboard in the school-age play area. 

Bowers organized 26 Boy Scouts from Troop 461 in Bethesda and supporting adults in the completion of his Eagle Scout project. He planned, sought approval from three agencies, purchased materials and constructed the platform and board.  

Anne Schmitz, director of the Executive Child Development Center, said, “It’s what the Boy Scouts do best. Many of the troop members attended our center and wanted to contribute to the children’s experience. I am very thankful.” 

“I really like the fact that I have left a part of me behind with the center,” said Bowers. “I went there until I was 11, and when I joined the Boy Scouts, I knew that I wanted to do my Eagle project there. The center has been a really big part of my life, so it feels really good to give back to them. I have so many fond memories and I wanted to do something for them to show my appreciation for all the good times I had.” 

His parents, Dr. John Bowers and Karen Bowers, both work for the Center for Scientific Review.

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