In January, nineteen Eagle Scouts from Troop 1011 chartered to Mt Bethel United Methodist Church were recognized by the Cobb County Board of Commissioners. Attaining the rank of “Eagle Scout” is the highest honor in Boy Scouts. Less than five percent of all Boy Scouts attain this honor. The troop had seventeen Eagle Scouts in 2015, thirteen in 2014 and nine in 2013. In fact, the Troop has produced 288 Eagle Scouts since its founding 45 years ago.
“It is always worthy of recognition when our young citizens are willing to put forth the extra effort required to attain the rank of Eagle Scout. The high ideals and values that are an integral part of scouting provide a foundation upon which our youth can build their lives as they grow to maturity. The scouts that were recognized have made an impact in their community through their dedication and involvement.” said Commissioner Bob Ott (Eagle Scout, 1972) who is also a Scoutmaster for Troop 1011.
At this meeting the County Commissioners also presented Commissioner Weatherford with his Eagle badge 52 years after he earned it. Commissioner Weatherford never had an official ceremony when he earned his Eagle medal back in 1964 because he moved away.
In 2015, Troop 1011 Scouts performed 22 Eagle projects representing over 2,300 service hours to the community. The following is a list of the Eagle Scouts and their Eagle projects:
Ryan Kahrs (2015): Built a fire pit at the Mt Bethel’s North Campus Scout area
Ben Thornton (2015): Built mile markers at Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield
Adam Schmidt (2015): Built serpentine fences at the Visitor’s Center at Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield
Michael Pike (2015): Built the stairs onto the new dock at Mt. Bethel’s North Campus lake
Sammy Pike (2015): Built the new dock at Mt. Bethel’s Christian Academy’s North Campus lake
Sam Fulkerson (2015): Built a wooden bridge at Fullers Park
Hayden Stadler (2014): Built outdoor classroom and fire pit at McClesky YMCA
Nick Champion (2014): Built steps and drainage channel at Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield
Nick Bowman (2015): Built a pagoda and a bench at Fullers Park
Matthew Christie (2015): Built a series of birdhouses at McFarlane Park
J.D. Pike (2014): Built pedestrian bridges at Allatoona Creek Park on the cross country and bike trail
David Odom (2014): Replaced the stairs on the cross country running trail at Pope High School
Michael Qualey (2015): Built picnic tables at the Chattahoochee Nature Center.
Neil Rossman (2015): Built railroad tie stairs at McFarlane Park
Ryan Manderfield (2015): Built stone benches and outdoor classroom at High Meadow School
Chris Ott (2015): Built the wooden walkway to the new dock at Mt. Bethel’s North Campus lake
Stephen Polkowitz (2013): Built an outdoor classroom at Hightower Middle School
David Hood (2015): Built a fence around the AC units at Mt Zion UMC
Tyler Schwartz (2015): Built kiosks for the gardens at the Chattahoochee Nature Center
Patton Robertson (2015): (Not Pictured) Built a butterfly garden at Lutheran Church of the Resurrection
William Frits (2015): (Not Pictured): Built lumber rack,and benches at Chattahoochee Nature Center.
Reprinted from EAST COBBER’s March 2016 issue
