On May 7, Michael’s Woodshop presented the Distinguished Volunteer Award to volunteers CJ Staton and Mell Cunningham in recognition of their “many years of consistent and dedicated contributions of time and talent to the development and operation of Michael’s Woodshop”.
CJ began volunteering in the fall of 2017, when Michael’s Woodshop was still in the concept phase. He was engaged in the initial planning and construction, helping with the installation of the insulation and walls, running conduit, pulling hundreds of feet of wire and installing dozens and dozens of receptacles throughout the shop. He is a regular volunteer during program sessions and is in the process of upgrading our jigs and templates using his 3D printer. Among his most notable and valuable contributions has been the development of many of our most successful programs; Pinewood Derby Days, Baloo the Builder, Webelos Build It and our Youth Assistant Program, which he continues to lead today.
Mell began volunteering in the spring of 2018, assisting with the completion of the lumber rack, the first major improvement in Michael’s Woodshop. For the next 7 months, Mell volunteered on an almost full-time basis completing the interior improvements including all of the work benches, shelving, tool storage systems and the dust collection system. After the shop officially opened in November 2018 (and continuing today), Mell has consistently spent several mornings a week in the shop working on numerous shop improvements and preparing materials for youth activities. He is a prolific “jig maker”, designing and constructing jigs to support youth activities and is currently developing our third summer camp project design (including project prototypes, jigs and evaluating process flow).
Please join us in recognizing CJ and Mell for their incredible contributions to Michael’s Woodshop. If you are interested in volunteering, please see “Join the Michael’s Woodshop Team” on our webpage, or email any questions to MichaelsWoodshop.CWBS@gmail.com.
Michael Hooper an Eagle Scout from the Colonial District (Troop 680 Eagle, March 3, 2020; Grand Slam of High Adventure 2020)recently completed the Everest Base Camp trek. 
Scouts from Troop 1066 located in Jefferson, Maryland routinely pursue merit badges as a part of their Scouting Program. During the month of April, they chose to complete the Chemistry Merit Badge. During several meetings, Scouts learned the differences between physical and chemical changes, why atmospheric pressure can affect hikers and scuba divers, and why caramelization makes food taste delightful. Scouts also discovered why manufacturing single-use items can be harmful to the environment and why it’s important to safely store and dispose of products that could harm the environment. Scouts completed the Chemistry Merit Badge by visiting the biotech company, Lonza Walkersville, Inc located in Frederick County, Maryland.
The Walkersville location is the largest manufacturing site for Lonza Bioscience and has had a footprint in Frederick County since 1974. Scouts toured the facility and learned about a lifesaving product Lonza manufactures at the location. LAL, Limulus Amebocyte Lysate, is found in the blue blood of the Atlantic Horseshoe Crab and is a key component in Endotoxin Detection Kits. This incredibly unique compound is instrumental in detecting endotoxin found in Gram-negative bacteria. Endotoxin is widely present in the environment and exposure could lead to sepsis in humans.
In order to ensure that Lonza creates the highest quality products, its Quality Control Laboratory uses chemistry to test raw materials arriving at the facility and finished products prior to shipping to customers. Scouts wore lab coats and safety glasses as they learned to weigh material, transfer liquids with a pipette, and watch a chemical reaction used to test reagents. The Scouts ended the Chemistry Merit Badge with newfound knowledge of the critical importance of a 475-million-year-old species and how the principles of chemistry can affect their everyday life.
In addition to the Great Falls National Parks, Troop 55 volunteers supported many local, regional, and national parks with many service 
Zane spotted a chance to reuse old tennis balls in addition to reducing waste. Zane explained, “My project is a huge success, with over 10,000 tennis balls collected and recycled. The used tennis balls are sent to Recycle Balls in Vermont and used for a variety of purposes, such as playground surfaces, sports surfaces, and pet toys. Recycle Balls is a non-profit organization in Vermont that specializes in recycling tennis balls. They have recycled over 10 million balls since 2016. Each tennis ball takes 400 years to decompose and millions of tennis balls are disposed of in landfills each year”. This Eagle Scout project not only reduced waste but also made a positive impact on the environment by keeping used tennis balls out of landfills. Zane educated over 300 individuals about recycling tennis balls.
The Scout BSAs of America’s Distinguished Conservation Service Award program honors scouts who carry out significant conservation projects. The Distinguished Conservation Service Award project requirements are more rigorous than a Scout BSA Eagle Award project. To earn the award, Scouts must complete two Eagle Scout environmentally related projects. It requires the Scout to conduct in depth research of a conservation issue; determine a solution; write a report; plan, execute and lead a project; educate the community outreach; write final project reports; present their projects and findings before a conservation committee; and earn 7 conservation type merit badges.