Five Boy Scouts earn Eagle rank in June

June was a big month for Scout Troop 114 as it had two separate Eagle Scout Court Courts of Honor for five different Eagle Scout recipients.

On June 1, scouts Mark Kachler, Jared Rodums and Michael Saporito received their Eagle Scout recognition at a Court of Honor at St. Joseph’s Church.

Four weeks later on June 29, scouts Dylan Bednarski and Connor Partington received their Eagle Scout recognition also at St. Joseph’s Church.

Mark, Jared, Michael, Dylan and Connor earned their rank as members of Troop 114, chartered by Saint Joseph’s Church in West Milford and led by Scoutmaster James Kachler.

To earn the Eagle Scout Rank, the highest advancement in Scouting, a Boy Scout must fulfill requirements in leadership, community service and outdoor skills.

While there are many options available to demonstrate proficiency in these areas, a number of specific skills are required to advance through the ranks of Tenderfoot, Second Class, First Class, Star, Life and Eagle.

Beginning with Star Rank, and continuing through the rank of Life and Eagle, a scout must demonstrate participation in increasingly more responsible community service projects.

For the rank of Eagle, these candidates carried out the following Community Service Projects, for which they raised tens of thousands of dollars to complete.

For his Eagle Project, Mark renovated the front exterior of Our Lady of Fatima Chapel, the church he attends in Pequannock.

Not only were the steps, railings, and sidewalk becoming hazardous, the landscaping and surrounding trees were getting overgrown and needed tending to.

With the help of Scouts, parishioners, and hired contractors, the front of the church underwent a total transformation.

Mark would like to thank all those who helped make the project a success.

Jared Rodums met the West Milford Elks Lodge several years ago as a scout in BSA Troop 114 participating in the Elk’s Flag Day ceremony.

The Elks programs “help children grow up healthy and drug-free, meet the needs of today’s veterans, and improve the quality of life.”

When it was time for his Eagle Project, the Elks became a logical choice. He met with the Elks’ Ken Hensley and a backyard paver patio was agreed on.

The patio’s purpose is to beautify this area, making a sturdy outdoor meeting place for members and visitors alike.

With a list of materials, he and his father Andre went to Valley Mason Supply for most of the materials, which included QP, stone dust, pallets of pavers, edge retainers & spikes, polymeric sand and transportation to the worksite.

This project took over 2-and-a-half months and 178 man-hours to complete. The final patio is 294 square feet with an additional 27 square foot walkway, amounting to a grand total materials cost of $1,055

For his Eagle Scout project, Michael Saporito chose one from the church’s beautification list.

The project was first consisted of the 13 wooden steps, but then expanded to the deck at the top of the wooden steps, resurfaced two concrete steps at the bottom, and replaced two separate steps on the side of the parish center. The wooden steps lead up to the outdoor chapel, firepit and preschool playground of St. Joseph’s parish center.

Michael began his project by power washing the steps, railings and balusters and removing all of the rotten wood. The scouts removed two 4x4 posts, 6 balusters and two 16-foot hand railings. Once done, the order was placed for all the wood. The order consisted of the hand railings, balusters, one 8-foot post, 15 boards of decking and four 2x4s.

Michael would like to offer thanks to Battinelli Landscaping for donating the mulch and river rock, also to PJ Monahan Paint Company for donating all the stain and brushes.

Dylan chose his project to help the NJ/NY Trail Association. Dylan lead a group of volunteers and Scouts to build an informational kiosk/sign by the Oak Ridge Reservoir. The kiosk was needed to display information regarding fishing and boating regulations for the reservoir.

To begin his project, Dylan worked with Robert Jonas, a representative from the Trail Association, in order to determine the exact location and size of the kiosk. Dylan drew up a plan with all the dimensions for the kiosk which was then approved by council.

Next he organized a flower sale and canning fundraiser in front of Highlander Deli in order to raise funds to purchase the necessary supplies. The plants for the sale were supplied by R&L Greenhouses. From both the flower sales and canning over $1,000 was raised, therefore, no cost would need to be paid out of pocket to purchase the supplies needed for the project.

For Connor’s Eagle project, he obtained approval from the West Milford Board of Education to plan and construct a 10’ X 20’ storage shed to house props and equipment for the West Milford Highlander Marching Band and Color Guard as the school lacked sufficient space for storage.

The shed was constructed on a qp gravel pad which was prepared by the West Milford Township Board of Education.

This involved marking out and clearing the site of underbrush and small trees, grading and leveling the site with a backhoe and installation of qp stone base material

Connor prepared plans and a material list, set a budget, and started a go fund me page and raised $2,490. Additional donations of roofing, siding materials and lumber were acquired from local businesses to bring the total project cost to $4,300.

Not every boy who joins a boy scouting troop earns Eagle Scout Rank. About 6% of all Boy Scouts earn the rank, according to the organization.