Eagle Scout project

STAFF PHOTO BY DAN PARKER Rick Tinnin, director of marine education at the University of Texas Marine Science Institute, shakes the hand of 14-year-old Matthew Jones, who led other Boy Scouts from Troop 25 of Aransas Pass in the construction of the 11-foot dinghy in the foreground for his Eagle Scout project. Jones donated the boat to the marine science institute’s Wetlands Education Center on Tuesday, June 9. Tinnin said he expects visiting children in coming months and years to use the boat while towing plankton nets to catch tiny sea creatures in the education center’s lagoon and study them under microscopes. Jones is the son of Charles and Bonnie Jones of Aransas Pass.