From the Capital Gazette:
L to R: Colin Tolliver , Jeremy Bone, Alec Pierce and Chris Arnold,
from Boy Scout Troop 454 in Davidsonville,
Boy Scouts Troop 454 in Davidsonville achieved a rare feat this
year: It had four eligible Scouts earn Eagle rank.
They met the requirements, completed the
projects and submitted them to the review board this year. Troop members Chris
Arnold, Colin Tolliver, Jeremy Bone andAlec Pierce received
their awards at a joint honor court at Holy Family Catholic Church in
Davidsonville on June 4.
Alec's project involved making a paddle
board rack to accommodate 10 paddle boards for the West River Methodist Church
Camp.
"I chose this project because I wanted
to give back to my local community and it also was where I went when I was
younger," he said. "I learned hard work pays off and benefits others
long after you are done."
Alec is attending Salisbury University in
pursuit of a business degree.
For his project, Colin organized a cleanup
of the Quaker Burying Ground in Galesville and built bluebird houses to place
in the cemetery.
"The hardest part was getting it off
the ground," Colin said. "We cleaned up litter, washed off the
fencing, cleared brush, raked up leaves and put down mulch around trees."
Colin is going to Penn State to study
aerospace engineering.
Chris built warm-up pitching mounds at
Davidsonville Park where he played Little League baseball for 10 years.
"I knew that they were in poor
condition," he said. "I thought it would be good for my project
because it was something I was close to and benefited the community."
He is going to Auburn University to study
political science with an eye to work in the State Department.
As his project, Jeremy created display cases
for the Jug Bay Wetlands Sanctuary in Lothian.
"I've been going to Jug Bay since I was
a child and it's a place I really love," Jeremy said. "I asked them
what they needed, and they said informational display cases because they don't
always have enough people available to inform visitors of what is there."
Jeremy is headed for West Point and hopes to
enter the intelligence field as an Army officer.
Each of the Scouts helped the others with
their projects, along with the other troop members, family, friends and
volunteers. They agreed the toughest lessons were learning how to delegate
responsibilities for the projects, keeping the projects' to-do lists moving and
managing the demands of life with family, school and Scouting.
The Eagle Scout designation
was founded more than 100 years ago. It is the highest achievement or rank
attainable in the Boy Scouting program of the Boy Scouts of America.He must
plan, develop and lead a service project — the Eagle Project — that
demonstrates leadership and a commitment to duty, before his 18th birthday.
After all requirements are met, he must complete an Eagle Scout board of
review. A merit badge and medal are presented to the successful Eagle Scout at
his honor court ceremony.
Since its inception in 1912, only 2.1
percent of eligible Scouts have earned the rank (about 2.5 million young men in
total). About 6 percent of eligible Scouts earn the Eagle badge each year.
