We Own Adventure

Scouting News for the DC Metro Area

Eagle of the Week

Eagle Project – Owl’s Well that Ends Well

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By: Troop Instructor Ian P. of Troop 997 and Senior Patrol Leader Cas K. of Troop 998G

Scouts from Ashburn’s Boy Troop 997 and Leesburg’s Girl Troop 998 joined together on a conservation mission for screech owls, organized by a Troop 997 Life Scout. The Scouts have spent the last week honing their woodworking skills building screech owl nesting boxes. The Eastern screech owl is not an endangered species, but its habitat is in decline, particularly in Virginia and the Northeast. Screech owls often resort to nesting in old woodpecker holes, but nesting boxes placed high in woodland trees keep the owls and owlets safe from predators like snakes, racoons and larger owls and other raptors.

Troop 997 has a tradition of addressing wildlife conservation issues, with several of its recent Eagle projects centering on building duck nesting tubes, bat boxes, duck feeders and bluebird boxes. Ian P. decided to focus on owls by building screech owl nesting boxes. He teamed up with Camp Highroad in Middleburg, a stellar United Methodist Church camp that has campsites frequently used by area Troops and Packs, as well as for leader training. Ian recruited Scouts from Troops 997 and 998G to build the nesting boxes, identified locations with the Highroads team, and will soon lead a team to mount them in likely nesting areas around the Camp. He built an extra nesting box and created a screech owl guide for the Camp’s nature education program. The guide includes information about the owls, the project, the installation locations around camp and instructions on annual maintenance.

Ian invited his sister Riley, a Star Scout and one of the founding members of Leesburg’s Scouts BSA Girl Troop 998, and her fellow Scouts to participate as well. They learned about the wildlife conservation and educational mission of the project, then received hands-on training with woodworking tools and methods. With over 80% of the Troop participating, the girls have taken what they’ve learned and accomplished, and completed the application material for the prestigious Hornaday Unit Award.

Virginia Teen Joins Inaugural Class of Female Eagle Scouts

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Local Virginia Scout Emma Bazemore, 17, completed her Eagle Scout Service Project earlier this month, putting her on track to join the Inaugural Class of Female Eagle Scouts, and become one of the first female Eagle Scouts in the National Capital Area. The eldest of five, Emma watched as her younger brother advanced in Scouting and became an Eagle Scout. When the Boy Scouts of America opened the Scouts BSA program to female members eighteen months ago, she signed up immediately and began her BSA journey.

“Recognizing limited time for me to accomplish my goals, I worked fast to get organized. I was excited to learn more about leadership and to advance in ranks like my brother did,” said Bazemore. Joining Troop 1533G in 2019 not only built Bazemore’s skills in leadership, but also her confidence. “The fact that you interview with adult members of the troop when advancing ranks or earning merit badges really helps to build some confidence as you share what you’ve learned. While each step can feel a little intimidating, you keep going, and it gets easier the more you practice.”

Bazemore credits such experiences in Scouts BSA with developing her confidence as a leader, saying,  “The experience I’ve gained from leading a troop of 15 girls gave me the confidence to run for election and become the president of the WT Woodson High School’s choir program for a group of 200 students.”

When asked if she would recommend the Scouts BSA program to other girls, Bazemore responded, “I would say if you like hanging out with other girls, doing hands-on activities, and learning new skills, then Scouting is for you. Girls in our troop go camping, earn merit badges, build new skills, and gain new experiences. Some favorites for me have been emergency first aid and kayaking. If you have the opportunity to join Scouting, I think it’s great. It teaches you about leadership, skills like wilderness survival, and independence.”

To earn her Eagle Scout Award, Bazemore must hold leadership positions in her troop, earn 21 merit badges focusing on important life skills such as first aid, camping, and personal finance, and lead a service project in her community. For her Eagle project, Bazemore organized volunteers from her troop to make snuffle mats and blankets for a local animal shelter, the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria. The shelter staff requested the snuffle mats because they stimulate dogs’ brains and encourage slower eating habits. She raised money to purchase the supplies and also collected material donations, like dog and cat food, from her troop. As a result of the pandemic, she had to accomplish all of this digitally to maintain social distancing. “Thankfully, it was fairly easy to transition the demonstration of how to make the blankets and snuffle mats online. Although I am not set on a specific career path yet, I am very interested in veterinary medicine, so I wanted to do a project I was both interested in and could tie into my love for animals.”

Less than 5% of Scouts BSA members will achieve the prestigious Eagle Scout Award. Next month she hopes to complete her application and join this select group. This level of achievement is not new to Bazemore, however, as she is also a recipient of the Girl Scouts highest award for Seniors and Ambassadors, the Gold Award, making her one of the first to achieve both titles.

Bazemore will be one of the first female Scouts BSA members to have her Board of Review – a final review and approval of her Eagle Scout application – in October. The Inaugural Class of Female Eagle Scouts will be officially announced in February of 2021.

Sibling Eagle Scouts from Troop 1131 Earn All 137 BSA Merit Badges

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Pablo and Gabriel Sejas-Fernandez, brothers and Eagle Scouts in Troop 1131, have earned all 137 merit badge currently offered by the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), an accomplishment achieved by only about 450 scouts in the 110-year history of the Boy Scouts. Troop 1131 is sponsored by St. Stephen’s United Methodist Church, in Burke, Virginia, and is part of the Patriot District of the National Capital Area Council, BSA. The boys’ inspiration to earn all the merit badges came early in their Scouting career when Pablo and Gabriel learned about an older Scout who had accomplished the feat. So, after several years of hard work, Pablo and Gabriel accomplished their goal. A small ceremony to celebrate their achievement was held on October 18, 2020, when they received the last merit badge they needed, Backpacking.

Pablo Sejas-Fernandez is a Senior at Lake Braddock H.S. in Fairfax County, Virginia. He joined Scouting in September 2014 and became an Eagle Scout on April 2, 2019. His Eagle Scout project was restoring the Indian Spring Community sign, removing the massive overgrowth, and landscaping the public area around the entry sign. Pablo’s leadership positions have included Senior Patrol Leader, Assistant Senior Patrol Leader, Patrol Leader, Bugler, Den Chief, and Troop Order of the Arrow Representative. His accomplishment includes earning the Ad Altare Dei Award in 2016, the Servus Dei Award in 2018, Service to Youth Outstanding Leadership in 2019, and the Pope Pius XII Award in 2020. He has over 150 days camping, earning the Alben Struble Award for Perfect Camping in 2016 and 2017, as a member of his earlier Troop 61 in the National Capital Area Council. He also has over 140 miles backpacking and hiking experience to his credit. Pablo attended the Kandersteg International Scout Center, in Switzerland in 2016, the National Order of the Arrow Conference in 2018, and the 2019 World Scout Jamboree at the Summit in West Virginia.

Gabriel Sejas-Fernandez is a Sophomore at Lake Braddock H.S. Gabriel earned the Arrow of Light as a Cub Scout and bridged over to Boy Scouts in September 2016. He earned the rank of Eagle Scout on October 18, 2020, at the same time he earned the last merit badge he needed, Backpacking. His Eagle Scout project was a landscaping project similar to Pablo’s. He cleaned up and removed abundant weeds and overgrowth. The planted 80 individual native Virginia species alongside the newly paved sidewalk at Hidden Oaks Nature Center, in Annandale, Virginia. Gabriel’s leadership positions have included Assistant Senior Patrol Leader, Patrol Leader, Troop Guide, and Bugler. Gabriel earned the Servus Dei Award in 2018, Service to Youth Award in 2019, and the Ad Altare Dei Award in 2020. He also has over 150 days camping, earning the Alben Struble Award for Perfect Camping in 2017 as a member of his earlier Troop 61. He also has over 140 miles backpacking and hiking. Gabriel attended the National Order of the Arrow Conference in 2018, and the 2019 World Scout Jamboree Jamboree at the Summit in West Virginia.

A Library for Grief

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Since William P. of Troop 10 in Warrenton, VA, was a child he had been inspired to become a Boy Scout by his grandfather, who was a Boy Scout himself. As Boy Scout, William wanted to serve his community to the best of his ability and impress his grandfather. Unlike his grandfather, who could not complete his Eagle Scout Project, William was determined to make sure he completed his and make his grandfather proud.
William began to look around his community to see where he could help. A member of his church, who knew William was a Scout, reached out to him. She asked if he would be interested in helping create a Little Free Library dedicated to helping people dealing with grief. William agreed to help; his Eagle Scout mentor suggested he should build a bench as well. With the approval of his Scoutmaster and some help from his church, William got all the necessary supplies and went to work.
Like many of his peers this year, William’s plans were put on hold due to COVID-19. Being a resourceful Scout, William adjusted his plans and continued to work on the free library. After completing the library and the bench, William felt proud of completing his Eagle Scout project, saying, “My favorite aspect of this project was being able to teach the younger Scouts how to use tools for different purposes.”

Eagle of the Week – Elliott Frank!

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Window glass is a major factor of death for migratory birds. Between 100,000,000 to 1,000,000,000 birds die annually from collisions with windows.

I’m Elliott Frank, from Troop 152 in Vienna, Virginia, and for my Eagle project, I wrote, directed, and produced a video public service announcement for the Audubon Society of Northern Virginia, linked here: https://youtu.be/0hPFdRHvEMM.

This video provides an overview on bird collisions with glass, and covers several alternative techniques to bird-safe glass local homeowners can implement on their own windows to help minimize this problem.

I’m an aspiring videographer and video editor, hoping to study film and video in college. The majority of the Eagle projects that I help my troop mates with consist of intensive outdoor manual labor building structures for local organizations. This may seem to you like an unconventional Eagle project, and you’re right. I wanted to combine my passion for filmmaking with my love for birds to create a long-lasting impact on Northern Virginia’s bird population. I’d like to thank the Audubon Society of Northern Virginia for allowing me to make this video on their behalf, and for providing access to my video on their website: audubonva.org

Eagle of the Week – Katie Hunter!

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When I learned that Bailey’s Elementary School in Vienna, VA, needed some garden boxes, I was inspired to help. I’ve always liked the school as my mother works there, and I particularly enjoy the idea of garden boxes that would help kids learn more about nature. So I decided to reach out to the school and present my plan for my Eagle Scout Service Project.

Once I shared my plan, the school was delighted to work with me through the challenges that COVID-19 presented. I first met with the Science teacher at the school to discuss the scope of the project. After receiving approval, we designed the garden boxes and prepared a list of what we would need. I, then, began to plan how we would construct and transport the boxes while following social distancing rules.

Once the wood arrived, my family helped me to cut the wood so that I could organize it. We then constructed the garden boxes at my house. A week later, we rented a truck to transport all of the boxes. We spent the day digging holes and installing the garden boxes at Bailey’s. Then the boxes were filled with cardboard and mulch. I found that the most difficult part of the project was deciding where to place the garden boxes because the clay was very hard to dig through. My favorite part of the project was seeing how many Scouts from both boy’s and girl’s Troops 987 came out to help. From this project, I learned that being prepared is very important and that you always need to have a backup plan.