We Own Adventure

Scouting News for the DC Metro Area

Leaders

Hornaday Badge Project “Evicting the Invaders”

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Approximately 5000 sq ft of invasive plant on the Gerry Connolly Cross County Trail.

Every Saturday and Sunday in October, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, college students, and neighborhood homeowners pulled invasive plants, primarily, pachysandra, from a section of the Gerry Connolly Cross County Trail off Miller Heights Road in Oakton. Eli Edwards, a Scout in BSA Troop 987 led the project with support from Hornaday advisor Sara Holtz and sponsor Fairfax County Park Authority’s Invasive Management Area (IMA) program. Invasive plants are non-native, aggressive plants that cause ecological or economic harm and degrade our natural ecosystem.

99 volunteers worked 210 hours to remove 85 bags of invasive plants from the park land. The goal was to replace the pachysandra with native plants and trees. Volunteers planted white wood aster, hairy bush clover, American alumroot, trailing bush clover, dwarf cinquefoil, pussytoes, arrowleaf violet, common wood rush, Pennsylvania sedge, bluestem,

Replace invasive plant with 110 native plants and trees.

goldenrod, arrowwood viburnum, witch hazel, hazelnut trees, ironwood trees, and redbud trees. Eli created the plan for this project in order to earn the BSA Hornaday Badge. This award was created by Dr. William T. Hornaday who was a conservationist and is a prestigious award that requires a Scout to lead a conservation project, complete several merit badges, and meet rank requirements. By successfully completing this project he is one step closer to earning the Boy Scout Hornaday Badge. Eli encourages homeowners to remove any invasive plants in your yard and replace with native plants (see list above).

– Eli Edwards

Duty to God Interfaith Brunch Brings all Together

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On November 3rd, 2019 many gathered for the the Duty to God Interfaith Brunch, at the newly refreshed John Mosby Russell Interfaith Chapel at Camp Snyder to celebrate Scout Fellowship and Interfaith diagloue. The free event began with a model Interfaith Campfire Worship Service humbly led by Scouts. The brunch included a “Duty to God” youth seminar, presentations of youth and adult awards, the “A Scout is Reverent” midway featuring local faith-based sponsors of Scouting programs and special words from Keynote Speaker Brig. Gen. Ron Harvell, USAF, Deputy Chief of USAF Chaplains.

ADAMS Center Youth Choir singing “America the Beautiful” to participants at the brunch.
Scout Executive Craig Poland and Forrest Horton present Brig. Gen. Ron Harvell with Camp Snyder Hiking Staff for serving as keynote speaker 3.

Brig. Gen. Ron Harvell, USAF, Deputy Chief of USAF Chaplains, serving as Keynote Speaker for NCAC Duty to God Brunch.
Eagle Scout Mikaeel Martinez- Jaka addressing participants at Duty to God Interfaith Youth Seminar.

An “A-Neigh-Zing” Eagle Project!

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Check out this “a-neigh-zing” Eagle project! Bryce Treichel constructed an ADA Compliant Disability ramp for horse riders! He and his team of volunteers designed and constructed the massive structure to allow those with disabilities to be able to ride horses. His wheelchair accessible ramp allowed anyone who had trouble walking or climbing stairs to be able to mount a horse. The equestrian field he built it for offers special therapeutic horse riding sessions for those with disabilities. Bryce loved leading the project, he found that when “Everyone as a team successfully accomplished something under my supervision,” he “felt extraordinary.” Bryce’s eagle project helped give those with mobility issues and disabilities the ability to ride horses. Who will your eagle project serve?

Eagle Project Shed Glow Up!

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Meet Ethan Frank! He’s an aspiring journalist who has learned a lot through his many years of Scouting. For his Eagle project, Ethan refurbished an old shed at the Lathrop E. Smith Environmental Center.

This creative writer claims that his “leadership skills developed in a way somewhat akin to your average fantasy/adventure novel.” He learned a lot from leading his group of volunteers in redoing this dirty old shed.

Ethan finds that he found the leader within him when he “was thrust into a position in which [he had] to quickly learn the fineries of leadership.” During his project, Ethan and his team repaired rotten plywood, re-shingled the roof, re-built doors, weather proofed the white trim, and sanded and repainted the whole shed.

Ethan’s project transformed a formerly unusable, falling apart shed into a beautiful, spacious storage unit that the environmental center could use. What will your Eagle project do?

This Eagle Project Protects Wild Ducks!

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“Quack Quack!” Check out this awesome Eagle Project from Maximo De Leon. He used cedar wood planks, chicken fencing, wood screws, and sign posts to build and install safe nesting boxes for wild ducks at Lake Fairfax park in Reston VA. In just two days, Maximo and his team of volunteers built and installed 15 duck boxes!  Maximo was happy to “see [his] project develop from an idea to the installation!” These boxes give the wild ducks a safe space to keep their young away from predators, what will your eagle project do?

Boy Scouts at the Ballpark, A Home Run Eagle Project!

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Check out this home run of an Eagle Project! Julian Edmonds, a creative writer who’s active on his school’s debate team, decided that he wanted to help the local little league players. The players desperately needed benches for their dugouts, as they were forced to stand while waiting for their turn in the game.

Leading his group of volunteers, Julian built, painted, and installed secure seats for the small baseball players. Julian did his research on what benches would work for the park, and how he would be able to build them before instructing his team and completing an awesome addition to the baseball field.

Julian helped the little league teams of his area with new benches, who will your eagle project help?