Senior Dan Wood and juniors Tyler Dalious and Nate Reibsome are working to achieve their Eagle Scout rank, which requires an accumulation of 21 merit badges, demonstration of Scout Spirit through law, service and leadership, and planning, overseeing and completing a service project of the Scout’s choice. Dalious and Reibsome, both current Life Scouts, are in the beginning stages of their Eagle projects. Since its conception in 1911, nearly two million boys have earned their Eagle Scout.
Dalious is currently working with members of the Buckhorn Church with plans to make their bell accessible for children and adults. “Since they redid the roof of the church, they had to remove the bell, so they want to have it accessible for kids and adults to still ring,” explains Dalious, who will be making a pavilion for their bell if everything goes as planned.
Reibsome, after choosing to build two benches for the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds, is preparing to write an extremely specific project report. “We write it so a stranger could pick up the paper and do the exact project,” he says.
With all the details involved in completing an Eagle project, sacrifices of time must be made. “I had a Trustees meeting, and a bunch of my friends were going to see a movie at the same time,” Dalious says. “I knew I had to go to the meeting because that was more important.”
With friends who are understanding of his commitment, Reibsome hopes he will become “a more well-rounded and better person” through his project. “A lot of leadership goes into the project because they don’t want the actual Boy Scout doing a lot of the hands-on work. Instead they want me to help and guide the other Scouts building it,” he says.
Along with becoming a better leader, Reibsome hopes to overcome some weaknesses. “I’m pretty shy about talking on the phone right now, like when calling the president of the Bloomsburg Fair,” Reibsome says. “I’m hoping my project helps me with that and makes me feel accomplished.”
Wood is a step ahead of the other Scouts since he has already completed his service project. After planning and fundraising, Wood built and installed two benches at the Fernville Park, a project that involved pouring cement slabs to anchor the finished additions.
Scout Master Robert Leighhow has seen Wood evolve from the time he was a Cub Scout. “At one time, Dan was very quiet and would not take any leadership positions, but over the past few years, he has developed into a leader.”
After all those years of involvement in Scouts, their final steps to becoming Eagles is to pass boards of review. After that, they will be VIPs at ceremonies and receive what they have scouted for, the Eagle.