Scout Master Bob Fierke reviews scouting gear packed inside of Troop 69's new trailer. (Jesse Wright / Pioneer Press)

A few years ago, Boy Scout Troop 69 in Burr Ridge went hunting for a new trailer.

Trailers are key to most scouting adventures. They’re packed with stoves, tents, cleaning and sleeping gear — pretty much anything anyone would need, as Scoutmaster Bob Fierke jokes, to survive a zombie apocalypse.

After enough years on the road though, they also collect rust and wear and tear and so after some 24 years on the road, Fierke decided to upgrade the trailer and build something new and modern from the wheels up.

The result is a new rig, 8.5-feet wide by 13-feet long with solar panels on the roof, LED lights inside and power outlets — as well as compact storage racks filled up with provisions. Inside, the trailer was about perfect. Outside though, it was a bit … plain.

But the scouts — ever prepared — had a plan by the name of Joanne Kubinski, a local artist whose son was once a member of Troop 69. In fact, her son won a neckerchief contest with his design for the troop’s neckwear so his mother would, in some ways, follow in her son’s footsteps.

From left Joanne Kubinski and Scout Master Bob Fierke stand next to Troop 69's trailer in Burr Ridge that Kubinski painted. (Jesse Wright / Pioneer Press)

She was game for a trailer mural.

“I had never done anything like this before,” she said. “I had painted, but not the outside of a vehicle. I had all winter to think about it.”

The process started in the winter of 2019 and by spring of 2020, she realized she needed to consult the boys.

“Come spring, I interviewed the boys in the troop one night and I said, ‘what are your favorite activities that you do here in the troop?’ And I went through all the answers and picked the favorite ones.”

Fierke said the final design hit all the right notes.

“I think that represents scouting, as far as I’m concerned,” he said.

And, of course, she incorporated her son’s neckerchief design into the trailer’s tableau.

“It was very meaningful to me to take that and put it on this side,” she said.

The Kubiski family's contribution to the troop includes two generations as Joanne's son designed the neckerchiefs when he was a scout with the troop. (Jesse Wright / Pioneer Press)

The rest of the design was entirely collaborative and over the next two years she worked on and off on the trailer, experimenting with auto paints and getting the look just right while taking time off for work and bad weather. Last year, the trailer made its first long haul to South Dakota, some 1,000 miles away, for a summer camp excursion. And it drew some notice.

“We had our trailer at our campsite and everybody was walking by, admiring it a little bit,” said Fierke.

Besides the in-person compliments, the trailer also got a mention and a photo in an article in Scouting Magazine’s online blog as part of a larger story about decorated trailers. Not that Kubinski was in it for the praise. She said it was an honor just to be asked in the first place.

“I a very grateful to this troop and to Bob for being very supportive and encouraging and that made it a wonderful experience,” she said. “This has been for me a way to give back to the troop.”

From left, Joanne Kubinski and Scout Master Bob Fierke review the Eagle Scouts who completed the Scouting program over the years through Troop 69. (Jesse Wright / Pioneer Press)

Not that she’s done with the trailer. As the last trailer lived a good quarter-century, Kubinski suspects there will be more than enough time for repairs and touch-ups and she’s looking forward to all of it.

“Oh, no I look forward to that,” Kubinski said. “And if other troops need something like that, I’d welcome the invitation. It was really exciting to be able to do this and to do the troop’s logo on the other side. It was an excellent opportunity though I will admit I was scared to death.”

Jesse Wright is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.