As a member of the Boy Scouts of America, I am a member of an extraordinary community that spans the nation. When I meet a fellow scout, we are brought together through shared experiences and values. I joined Boy Scout Troop 61 in 2001. Since then I have made many connections within my local community and a few in the nation. Scouting has allowed me to make friends at other schools and meet adults that I would not have otherwise met. Since Troop 61 chartered in 1925 it has registered over 1800 scouts. I’ve gotten to meet many of them. Second and third generation 61’ers participate in weekly meetings just like their parents and grandparents.


Earning my Eagle Scout is my greatest accomplishment, and that has put me in an even more special community. Only about 2% of boys who join scouts earn the rank of Eagle, so this strengthens my bond with anyone who has earned their Eagle Scout rank. Eagles are rare. Eagles are linked together like a strong chain pulling up a skyscraper, and ascending the trail to Eagle becomes challenging and rugged like the top of Mt. Everest. To earn the rank of Eagle, I had to lead a community service project. I led approximately 40 adults and scouts in a food drive. I led these people in a door-to-door collection. My food drive, also, involved me contacting local stores to see if they would donate. One store manager told me that normally they do not make donations, but since he was also an Eagle Scout, he made a donation. While I was going around the Pinehurst Neighborhood, some lady introduced herself as the mother of a former Troop 61 member.


Within the scouting community, there are extra organizations for scouts who go above and beyond what is expected in their troop. H. Roe Bartle founded the Mic-O-Say Honor Camping Society for the Heart of America Council and Pony Express Council for scouts in the Midwest. Achieving the rank of Tom-Tom Beater in the Tribe of Mic-O-Say connects me to many people. One weekend my troop went on a campout at Clinton State Park. We hiked up a hill. I remained as the rest of the scouts returned to the campsite. A man saw me wearing my Mic-O-Say claws – a symbol of membership. He came up to me and told me he and his brother-in-law belonged to Mic-O-Say as well. Wearing the tribal claws sparks the reflection of our tribal ceremony campfire’s flames, which light up like pyrotechnics at a rock concert.


I hold membership in the Order of the Arrow (OA), the National Scout Honor Camping Society. This national program connects me to many people within the country. When I was traveling in Europe and Israel with my youth group, I met a fellow scout from Massachusetts. Also, I met someone at an OA event and then ran into him at training for my job. I met a counselor down at scout camp and ran into him at the OA fall induction weekend.
Earning my Eagle Scout at age 14 is my greatest accomplishment. This is because only about 2% of boys who join Boy Scouts earn their Eagle rank. Of the 2% who earn their Eagle rank, they usually earn it at age 16 or 17.

I have been in Scouts since the first grade. I have remained in Scouts all these years because Scouting has taught me many skills like survival skills, and things that aren’t taught in school. It has allowed me to make friends at other schools and meet adults that can be contacts for things such as jobs and references.

One descriptive adjective that describes me is leadership potential. In Scouts I have had the positions of assistant patrol leader, patrol leader, and assistant senior patrol leader. Through these positions I have learned how to lead groups of 4 to 45 people. To earn the rank of Eagle I had to lead a community service project. When I did my project I led approximately 40 adults and scouts to complete my food drive. I led these people in a door-to-door collection. My food drive, also, involved me contacting local stores to see if they would donate. I can lead groups in college in things such as group projects for class, college clubs, and student senate.

Another adjective that describes me is initiative. If I don’t like how things are getting done I take the initiative to get it changed, or if something needs to be started I take the initiative to start it. In Scouts I wanted to join the national honor camping society called Order of the Arrow (OA). To join OA you have to be voted in by your fellow scouts. However, even though my scout troop has been around since 1925, we didn’t participate in OA. Instead we only participated in a local honor camping society called Mic-O-Say. Because of what I want to major in, I may not stay in the Kansas City area after college. I felt I should join the national group as well as the local one so as an adult I can participate in scouts nationally. I asked for permission from my troop’s executive board to set up my own election. They allowed me to set up my own election to be voted in. At that time no one else in my troop had ever been in OA, so I had to find another troop to hook up with to go to an induction weekend. Since I got inducted, more scouts have expressed an interest in joining OA.
Scouting links me to a community of friends who have shared these scouting experiences.