SILT, Colorado — One of Tom Bullock's last wishes before he died of colon cancer six years ago was that his only son, Jake, finish all his requirements to achieve his Eagle Scout rank.

Jake, now 18, recently fulfilled that wish by building a bear trap for the Colorado Division of Wildlife, which served as his Eagle Scout project. The culvert-style trap will be used by the DOW's Glenwood Springs area field office in its bear relocation efforts.

But the challenges have been many for this young man in achieving scouting's highest honor.

The loss of his father was just one in a string of family deaths and other hardships that Jake had to overcome, including his own battle with cancer for the past year.

“Jake was 10 when Tom got sick, and 12 at the time he passed away,” explained his mother, Patty Bullock, during a recent interview at the family home up Divide Creek south of Silt.

Following Tom's death, two of Jake's cousins died, including one cousin killed in a car wreck just days before he, too, was to earn his Eagle Scout rank. Then Jake's grandmother died in 2008, also from cancer.

In the spring of 2010, Jake went to the doctor with a painful lump on his shoulder. He was diagnosed in June of that year with stage 4 nodular sclerosing Hodgkin lymphoma, a type of Hodgkin's disease.

“When they told us he had cancer, it was like, ‘OK, what else? We give up,'” Patty said.

But giving up wasn't part of Jake's spirit.

Between trips back and forth every two weeks to Primary Children's Medical Center in Salt Lake City, and with some help from friends back home, he managed to continue working on his Eagle Scout project.

Doctors say Jake is now cancer-free, though he still has to undergo regular check-ups and radiation treatments.

This spring, Jake graduated from high school through the Garfield Re-2 School District's Kaplan Academy online program.

And, last month, he was awarded his Eagle Scout honors with Troop 233 of Silt and New Castle. He's also been a member of Troop 221 in New Castle.

A lasting legacy

Jake began working with area DOW manager Perry Will about two years ago on the bear trap project.

“One of the things you want to do with your Eagle Scout project is build something that's going to be around and serve the community for a long time,” said Jake, who put about 150 to 200 hours into completing his project.

“Part of the Eagle Scout requirement is also to learn to delegate,” he said. “So, when I was sick, I had friends do some of the welding for me, and I was there to supervise and provide support.”

Will, who was a friend of Jake's father, said the DOW was short on bear traps. He provided some guidance for Jake to carry out the project, while a majority of the materials were donated.

The trap is made out of a round metal culvert about eight feet long. It has a bait hook and trigger mechanism in the far back end that closes the trap door once the bear is inside.

“He made some modifications to it, and really made it better in a lot of ways,” Will said. “It's more user-friendly for the wildlife officers. I think he built a great bear trap.”

After a few more modifications, Jake will turn the trap over to the DOW to put into regular use.

“This is something we will still be using 20, 30 years from now,” Will said.

Making papa proud

Also mentoring Jake along the way was his scout troop leader Dave Smith, who was also good friends with Tom Bullock, Patty explained.

“We had Tom at home after his surgery,” she said. “Dave was up here talking to Tom, and he made a promise that he was going to make sure Jake got his Eagle Scout. And he followed through.”

It would have been easy to give up after his own cancer diagnosis, but Jake said he was inspired by one of his doctors at Primary Children's in Salt Lake, Dr. Phillip Barnette.

Dr. Barnette shared with Jake and his mother that he, too, had been diagnosed with the same type of cancer when he was younger.

“He said, ‘Look where I am now,' ” Patty said. Dr. Barnette also now spends part of his time researching a cure for Hodgkin's disease.

“At that point, Jake's attitude really changed, which changed my attitude,” she said.

The trials and tribulations weren't quite over, though. Last December, Patty suffered a heart attack and had to be hospitalized for a period of time.

“This has been a real big challenge for me,” Jake said. “It was hard with everything that was going on. I wasn't feeling too great a lot of the time, but I had a lot of support.”

Jake is also active in Garfield County 4-H. He recently competed in a national 4-H shooting competition in Texas, and is an avid archer and bow hunter. He is also preparing to show two pigs and three rabbits at next month's Garfield County Fair.

He recently began working for Rifle Truck and Trailer, and has plans to take welding classes through Colorado Mountain College in the fall.

Jake aspires to become a pilot as well, and has applied through the Make-A-Wish Foundation for assistance in attending flight school. Make-A-Wish assists children and teenagers who are suffering from cancer and other life-threatening diseases in fulfilling their wishes.

jstroud@postindependent.com