By GINNY PRIVITAR
west milford ‑ Lukas Graf, a member of Troop 114, was recognized as an Eagle Scout this past May, upon the completion of his patio project for Greenwood Forest Fire Company Three in West Milford. He became a Cub Scout in 2005 and since then has served Assistant Patrol Leader, Patrol Leader, and Senior Patrol Leader.
He volunteers for the company as a junior firefighter and wanted to show his appreciation by providing a patio for firefighters to relax and barbecue. Lukas consulted with Company Three's Chief Glenn Dowson and they decided on an appropriate spot behind the firehouse to put in the patio.
First Lukas raised the money for the project with a Go-Fund Me account that brought in nearly $1,000 for materials. The firehouse already had some donated pavers that required sorting to separate out the broken ones. Lukas, his fellow Scouts and volunteers sorted through them and stacked the good ones on pallets.
He then led his group in building a 21' by 21' paver patio.
He and his father dug down seven inches and removed the soil to another part of the property. Lukas obtained eight yards of QP stone (quarry-processed stone; a mix of stone and stone dust used for a base) and three yards of stone dust donated by Braen Stone in Ringwood NJ. They spread out the QP and tamped it down to create a sturdy base for the patio. The stone dust was then leveled out on top, a process which took Lukas and his volunteers hours of work to get perfect.
The patio was constructed of red stone with a grey border and embellished with a grey shield in the middle with a green number three. The group was able to purchase the remaining pavers required at a discounted rate at RT 23 Patio and Mason Center in Hamburg.
Once the pavers were installed, the volunteers tamped a special joint sand in between them followed by concrete around the edges to lock them in place. Finally, they spread donated mulch around the edges to finish off the patio.
The members of the fire company enjoy their new patio and have put it to good use. They've added tables, chairs and a fire pit to complete it.
Lukas would like to thank Tim Menier, Brian Menier, Mr. Chacon and Ty Basket for their help in planning and the loaning of equipment. He thanks Braen Stone for the donations and RT 23 Patio and Mason Center for the discounted materials. He also thanks his Mom and Dad, (Gail and John) and sister Kristen for helping with a lot of the work along with Scoutmaster Jeff Hanson, the Scouts of Troop 114, their families and everyone that donated to his Go-Fund-Me account.
Lukas graduated from West Milford High School and will be attending Passaic County Community College in the fall. When asked why he chose the fire department for his project, he said, "Because I always wanted to be a firefighter and I knew a lot of people at the fire department." He and his dad have both joined the department as probationers and Lukas will also attend fire school this fall.