We Own Adventure

Scouting News for the DC Metro Area

eagle scout project

Bikes for the World

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Dhruv S. of Troop 1983 in Oakton, VA, is an avid biker. He knows how great a bike can be not only for leisure but also for practical uses such as transportation. So when Dhruv heard Bikes for the World was looking for volunteers, he jumped at the opportunity. Bikes for the World is an organization that collects, refurbishes, and ships bikes to impoverished communities around the world. He loved volunteering at their warehouse and seeing the pictures of people enjoying the bikes they had received. Dhruv wanted to contribute more to that happiness when people received their bikes, so for his Eagle Scout project, he decided to hold a bike drive with a goal to collect 50 bikes.

Dhruv began by designing flyers to reach out to his community about the collection drive. He posted them throughout his town and in nearby shopping centers. He also shared a digital version of the poster on Nextdoor and Facebook to reach even more people. Then Dhruv began to receive messages. Some people were able to drop off their bikes during the scheduled collection time. For those who couldn’t, he picked up their bikes ahead of time and stored them in his garage. On the day of the drive, Dhruv and some friends transported the bikes from the garage to the site at Vale United Methodist Church, his troop’s sponsoring organization, and the bike drive officially began. It lasted for five hours, and Dhruv managed to collect 130 bikes! They collected so many bikes that the truck that came to pick them up couldn’t contain them all. Dhruv quickly taught his volunteers how to disassemble the bikes so they could fit in the truck.

Having completed his project and sent these bikes to their new homes, Dhruv said, “ I enjoyed leading and teaching my friends how to disassemble the bikes, and I heard from them that it was a rewarding and satisfying process. I learned the value of time management by setting timelines and schedules for myself to make sure I was on track. I also learned the value of good communication through teaching my volunteers effectively how to prep the bikes. All in all, I think it was a successful project!”

Maryland Teen Joins First Female Inaugural Class of Eagles

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On October 28th 2020, BSA Troop 1268 of New Market, MD celebrated its first female Eagle Scout. Ashlyn Cooper of New Market, MD became one of the first class of female Eagle Scouts in the country after successfully completing her Eagle Scout board of review. She joined BSA the very first day that BSA opened up their Scouting program to female youth in February 2019 and completed her Eagle rank work in Sept 2020. She has embraced the program with 100% passion, having logged 48 camping nights, 160 miles of hiking, 200 service hours, 39 merit badges, 5 summer camps, serving as the troop’s first Senior Patrol Leader, attending and then joining staff for the BSA’s National Youth Leadership Training, and being inducted into the Order of the Arrow. Through all of this, Ashlyn’s excitement about sScouting only continues to grow and become infectious to others in the troop. This journey for Ashlyn is not over at Eagle. She plans to continue to earn Eagle Palms, having already earned 3 and has a goal of 60 merit badges by the time she turns 18. She will also now be taking on a bigger role within the Troop as a Junior Assistant Scoutmaster, and will be encouraged to become an even stronger leader.

Ashlyn comes from a long lineage of Scouting. Her grandmother was the first female leader for her uncle’s BSA Troop many years ago when he was in Scouts, her grandfather was a Sea Scout leader, her father is Scout Master of the Scouts BSA troop 268 linked to her Scouts BSA Troop 1268G and her older brother is also an Eagle Scout.

We congratulate Ashlyn on all she has achieved and will continue to help her to achieve more.

For more information on our program, please visit www.troop1268.org.

 

Eli Glickman’s Eagle Project for the Library of Congress

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Eli Glickman’s Eagle Project is so innovative and interesting that I wanted to submit it to Scouter Digest so others could hear about it. Here is Eli’s own description of his project:

“Personal stories are a treasure trove of information, they offer perspective, reflection, and first-person experience. That’s ultimately why I selected oral history as the background for my Eagle project. I had heard about another project done in my Troop by a Scout who has since graduated, Scott Burns, where he interviewed World War II veterans about their experiences in the War. I wanted to focus less on actual wartime and more on the process of returning home that veterans undergo. I felt that this was part of most veterans’ stories that is seldom discussed in society and that it deserved attention. I then got in touch with the Veterans History Project at the Library of Congress which was the ultimate beneficiary for my project. After that a group of Scouts and I reached out to several veterans whose contact info we received through Troop connections; I later reached out to the American Legion to get a complete 10 veterans to interview, their help in coordinating and establishing these contacts was tremendously beneficial to the success of my project. After that the Scouts and I coordinated a plan to conduct the interviews, focusing on hearing as much of each veteran’s story as possible and learning about their reflections on their experiences. The result of the project was incredibly rewarding, the Scouts and I learned not only stories from these veterans but how to better empathize and interact with veterans we see on a daily basis.”

A Home For Our Feline Friends

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I have been volunteering with Operation Hood for the past few years. Operation Hood helps feral cats; I was initially drawn to them because of my love for cats. So when looking for ideas for my Eagle Scout Project, I decided to help Operation Hood by making cat houses.
I originally had the idea in March, but due to COVID-19, I couldn’t begin until mid-July. During that time, I decided to reuse some old cat houses my grandfather had in storage rather than start from scratch. We also converted old dog boxes that needed to be cleaned, sanitized, and painted. After about three days of hard work transferring the cat houses to my house and then to Operation Hood, I finally could start the project. The hardest part of the project was working around the weather. Everything was planned out, but unfortunately, it began to rain a lot, like every weekend. We had to work around it. Eventually, we had to bring out canopies so we could start working on putting the fronts on the houses, staining the houses, and building the cat tree. Then we had to postpone painting the wooden ramps until the following weekend due to the rain.

This project was harder than I thought it would be. I had to figure out how to relay the ideas that I had on paper and in my head to my Scout volunteers. The project helped me with my leadership, planning, and communication skills. I also learned to plan for anything, especially the weather. During this project, some of our wood was cut wrong as well, so we had to adjust our plans slightly.

I found my favorite aspect of the project was giving back to an organization that I truly believe in. They are doing such great work and care so much for the cats. It was a wonderful feeling seeing (within 5 minutes of completing the project) cats utilizing what we just built. It made the project worth it.

An Activity For All

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Special needs children face challenges every day. As part of my Eagle Scout Service Project, I wanted to support these children in a crucial area – sensory activity. My mom does part-time substitute teaching and prefers to work with special needs students at Buffalo Trail Elementary School. One day, she mentioned that it would be nice if the students at her school could have more engaging sensory activities. This got me thinking about ways I could provide the students with their needs. Ultimately, I decided that I would design and build two sensory activity tables for my Eagle Project.

First, I researched sensory stimulation, as well as its needs and considerations. Activities help children develop appropriate responses to stimuli and can enhance their learning experience. They can also facilitate better visual, auditory, and tactile processing. In doing so, children can learn how to regulate their behaviors in a comfortable environment. However, some may be more sensitive to their environment and inclined to overstimulation. Using this information, I compiled a list of possible sensory activities that could be used. Next, I thought a table would be the most appropriate means to present and organize these activities for the students. I leveraged the activity table’s general design from a table my dad built for me when I was younger for my own activities (e.g., building train tracks, playing with Legos, playing with cars, etc.).

I then met with a Special Education Program teacher from Buffalo Trail Elementary School to discuss the proposal, gather requirements (e.g., size, height, features), and start planning the project. With the requirements in hand, I proceeded to make one of the tables as a prototype. This helped me fine-tune the process, materials, and design of the tables. I then used this experience to model the way for the second table. For example, originally, the table legs’ dimensions were slightly too small to secure the caster wheels with all four screws. For the sake of stability, I expanded the legs using an additional 2”x 2” board, enabling the caster wheels to be appropriately fastened to the legs. Once the prototype was completed, I planned out how to best execute the construction with other Scouts and participants. This included determining the order of how different pieces would be built, what teams would make what parts, how to maintain quality and safety, who would be on what team, how to motivate the team, and which participants could use what tools.

To account for COVID-19, I pre-screened the participants based on my Troop’s checklist. I also provided masks, hand sanitizers, and face shields on the build date. Social distancing was also employed (when applicable) to guard against transmission.
The most challenging part of the project was planning. There were many aspects to consider, including measurements, materials, supplies, tools, and safety. Other considerations included what activities to use and how to manage and lead Scouts to complete the project. Although it was a bit tedious and demanding, this process helped me improve my critical thinking and planning skills, including determining the budget, procedures, and logistics.

My favorite parts of the project were seeing the development of my ideas take shape. Its completion left me satisfied, especially seeing how beneficial the outcome is. What started as merely an idea became tangible objects that will benefit students over many years.
The most important things I learned from completing my project were communication, leadership, and planning skills. Being able to communicate effectively with the beneficiary, Scout leaders, and the Scouts who assisted me, whether through email or speech, was crucial to the project’s completion. With this came improved leadership skills, as I was able to better formulate courses of action and efficiently construct the tables.

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.