By Carol Bailey

Scout Joe O., of Troop 900, proved that he has insight and leadership skills recently when he came up with a unique idea that would help him, and his Scout troop, as well as Prince George County Food Bank. Tuesday, April 22, 2003 the project was moved into place and Joe, as well as his troop members and troop leaders, felt a sense of accomplishment for a job well done.

It began ‘when Clay Garrett, head volunteer at the Food Bank, mentioned to Joe that the Food Bank needed more shelving for storing canned goods. Joe, who is a ninth grader, and has helped stack canned goods at the Food Bank, picked up on that need, and began to make plans to build those shelves with his fellow Scouts.

Many people became involved, and the first one was Mr. F., who made a prototype for

Joe then organized four different work sessions, and different Scouts worked at different times. They worked at Mr. Warren J.’s place, for he had the tools and the experience that the Scouts needed for this project. The shelves were cut out, put together sanded, and eventually finished with a pine stain. Each unit was 80 inches tall, and 3linches wide. Assistant Scout leaders George (Ralph) O. and (Scoutmaster) Charlie V. helped with their advice and encouragement.

In order to meet the requirements for Eagle Scout, young Joe must now submit a formal report of

Becoming an Eagle Scout is not a particularly easy task. The first difficult goal to meet is to complete all of the merit badges. A quick glance at Joe’s badge sash confirms that he has done that. The project that all Eagle Scouts must do is to organize, design and complete a community project, exhibiting leadership skills. The shelf project that Joe organized, designed and completed is

The Food Bank will use these much - needed shelves, and there will be extra space for more canned goods now that these shelves are in place.

Joe O. will soon rank as an Eagle Scout in Troop 900, which meets at Gregory Memorial Church, and he already has ranked as an Eagle Scout in the eyes of the community.

Project aimed at helping students read better

By Carol Bailey

  The tall, blond junior of Prince George High School has strong feelings about children who don't enjoy reading because it's difficult for them.

Thomas, a member of Boy Scout Troop 900, which is sponsored by Gregory Memorial Church, is determined to do something about this situation. So, with the help of two media specialists at Beazley and Walton, respectively, he decided to make his Eagle Scout project one that would help children who find reading a difficult task.

He plans to record five hooks on CDs and donate them to the

They will be great for students in early kindergarten to the third grade. These books will also be on the Accelerated Readers Program.

“Hopefully this will help them with teaching phonics, for when you hear someone speak, you pick up the vowel sounds” Thomas stated. He is a member of the National Honor Society, the Beta Club, and the Stream team. Spanish is his favorite

subject, and he is on the  wrestling team, and spring track, throwing the shot putt and the discus.

Since he lives in” the boonies (his words exactly), he reads when he has free time, and he enjoys hiking and camping.

His troop is planning a 6o mile hike on the Appalachian Trail over spring break, and he is excited about that.

This Eagle Scout project reflects Thomas’s commitment to education.

Using the Theme of the Three Little Pigs, he constructed three different stages…

By Carol Bailey

   Eagle Scouts are very inventive people who complete wonderful projects while demonstrating leadership qualities.

   Thomas G., a senior at Prince George High School, recently completed a construction project, with the help of his Boy Scout Troop 900, that will bring joy to little children, and hope to older people.

   “When looking for a project to do,” explained Thomas, son of Greg and Connie G., “I contacted Dr. Holvar Olsen, who is director of CARES, which is an emergency shelter for battered women in this area. CARES stands for Crisis Assistance Emergency Response Shelter .He suggested that I build a puppet stage for the little children who accompany their mothers to the shelter.”

   Using the theme of The Three Little Pigs, he constructed three



 

different stages, made of wood, with two sides that fold back, so a  small child can get behind the third board to work the puppets. Each stage has a small window in it, and his mom stitched curtains for the windows.

   Thomas explained, “Each one is like one of the houses of the Three Little Pigs. We bought wood slabs and glued those on one to make a house of straw, and the next one we purchased some bamboo place mats that we could wire on, so that one looks like a house of sticks. The third one was painted Colonial Red so it looks like bricks,” he added.

   Thomas continued, “These three stages had to be light weight, and we had to flatten the heads of the screws, so the children wouldn’t get cut when using them, and they had to fold, for easy storage and transportation. Each one is about four feet high,” he added.  The stages were given to the CARES house in Petersburg on Thursday, April 29. The troop and Thomas presented them to Dr. Olsen for the home.

   Dr. Olsen plans to display the stages this summer at the Peanut, Pine and Pork Festival in the booth that will provide information for the home and hopefully earn donations to help run the home.

   Thomas, who has been a Scout for years, is a member of the Order of the Arrow, which is an organization within the Scouts that honors campers of the first rank.

   His love is this kind of project, for he admitted that he loves building things. He figures that he and the other 15 boys spent three Saturdays working about four hours each day to complete the project.

   Thomas also built his own truck, and he loves to drive his Dixie ‘83 ski boat during the warm weather.

   Thomas plans on attending Richard Bland next year, and to hold a job also.

   This special Eagle project will delight the children at the CARES center, and help ease some of the worry from those seeking to better their life.