If you are one of those lucky young men whose parents say that you cannot get your driver's license until you earn Eagle Scout rank, then you know my pain. I have helped lots of friends earn their Eagle Scout rank, and usually the project is something like painting a park bench or two, or digging post holes for fences.

I don't have anything against painting benches, but I wanted my project to be something that mattered to me.

Since I was two months premature (I weighed just over four pounds), my parents have mentioned many times how much the love and concern of others meant to them when they were worried about my survival. One gift, a cute stuffed lion, had particular meaning. I decided to start a project to give a few more "courage" lions to other parents of premature babies. How hard could that be?

Almost a full year later, I have logged hundreds of hours on the project and benefited from the help of over 60 different volunteers. On March 24, 2009, I finally carried the first batch of completed lions to the Utah Valley Regional Medical Center, where they will be distributed to parents of critically ill newborns. I am still hoping to donate dozens more before I consider this phase of the project "complete."

And yes, I got my driver's license.