Scouts BSA Troop 99 produces three Eagle Scouts
Three local Scouts were recently awarded Scouting’s highest achievement, the rank of Eagle Scout. The new Eagles are Jackson Ellis, Austin Raines and Zach Scheeler, who are all longtime members of Troop 99, which is chartered through Ringgold United Methodist Church.
To achieve the rank of Eagle, a Scouts must demonstrate that they have lived by and will continue to live by the principles of Scouting, complete at least 21 required merit badges, and complete other requirements such as holding leadership positions within the troop, performing community service hours and participating in troop activities. Additionally, every Eagle Scout candidate is required to complete a large-scale community service project that is fully conceptualized, funded, and directed by the candidate.
Jackson’s Eagle project involved planting twelve Yoshino cherry trees at the City of Chickamauga Cemetery. He partnered with the city manager for the city to plan and execute the project. Jackson is currently a senior at Gordon Lee High School, where he is a member of FCA, FFA, FCCLA and Key Club. He is also a member of the football, cross country and track teams, holds a 3.9 GPA, and is working on his 13th year of earning the Perfect Attendance Award.
He enjoys refereeing basketball for GHSA, TSSAA, and NGAC. Jackson has been accepted to Shorter University and plans to major in Education, with a future goal of becoming a teacher and coach and continuing to referee.
Austin’s Eagle project consisted of organizing the construction and installation of two large map kiosks at the Chickamauga National Battlefield in Fort Oglethorpe. He coordinated with the park rangers to replace the old dilapidated kiosks near trailheads for some of the horse and walking trails. Austin graduated from Ringgold High School earlier this year with a 4.0 GPA, and is currently a freshman at the University of Georgia on a Zell Miller Scholarship. He is double majoring in Linguistics and International Business, and is a member of UGA’S E-sports team. He will be applying to the Honors College next semester.
Zach’s project addressed multiple landscaping and beautification improvements outside of Ringgold Elementary School. These included pressure-washing and painting 23 benches, building and filling four flower beds, and pressure-washing portions of the building. Zach graduated from Heritage High School this past spring. He enlisted in the Coast Guard and has completed boot camp in Cape May, N.J. He is currently stationed in Charleston, S.C., and has a long-term goal of becoming a boatswain’s mate.
Eagle Scouts are a small but elite group. Eagle Scouts make up well under 1% of the population; however their influence and impact on their communities is felt at a far greater rate. For example, according to NASA and Scouts BSA, out of 312 U.S. astronauts since 1959, two thirds were in Scouting and 39 were Eagle Scouts. Half of all space shuttle missions had an Eagle Scout on board, and of 12 men who have walked on the moon, 11 had Scouting experience (including Neil Armstrong who was an Eagle Scout). Recent statistics show that 12.5% of male U.S. senators and over 20% of West Point cadets were Eagle Scouts, even though only a small percentage of Scouts ever achieve the rank of Eagle.
Scouts BSA Troop 99 is led by Scoutmaster Jonathan Raines (who is an Eagle Scout
himself). Anyone seeking information about the troop can contact Raines at 540580-7241 or jraines1976@ yahoo.com. Troop 99 is very active, completing numerous community service projects and attending regular camping and outdoor activities (including annual summer camp). For example, recently most of the troop earned the 50th Anniversary EPA Award, which required completion of merit badges relating to animal study, outdoor activities, earth science and public health, and completing an environment/ public health community service project. The troop is accepting new members; it meets at Ringgold United Methodist Church on most Mondays at 7 p.m.