Boy Scout Troop 608 awards Eagle to Will Beacom

On Friday, November 28, in the Great Hall of Hamden’s Spring Glen Church, BSA Troop 608 and friends and family of Will Beacom gathered to celebrate and honor Will for his seven years as an active member of the troop and his accomplishment of earning the rank of Eagle. Will is a 2014 graduate of North Haven High School and is currently a freshman at the University of Vermont (UVM).

During his tenure as a member of troop 608, Will served two years as patrol leader, one year as troop scribe and in his final year, he was elected Senior Patrol Leader and led the Patrol Leader’s Council (PLC). Troop 608 is a scout-led troop; the PLC is entrusted with planning responsibilities for all meetings and troop activities. In his Eagle speech, Will expressed appreciation for the leadership experiences he had while in the troop. This fall, as a member of his dorm council at UVM he reflected, “We have a meeting every week that’s very similar to a PLC. And I cannot tell you how frustrating it is not be in charge of those meetings!!”

In order to earn the rank of Eagle, scouts must advance through the six scout ranks, been active in the troop, earned at least 21 merit badges, provide planning and leadership for a service project and successfully complete a board of review. Eagle Scouts are an impressive group of individuals: local, state and national leaders in academia, business, politics, athletics and more.

A culminating activity for scouts working toward Eagle is planning, fundraising and executing a Service Project. Will’s project benefitted Camp Cedarcrest in Orange. Cedarcrest was created in 1924 by the Inter-Service Clubs Committee of New Haven, Inc., a private and independent non-profit organization. The camp is committed to providing an enlightening and enjoyable outdoor experience to the underprivileged youth of the Greater new Haven area, focusing on environmental stewardship, community service, team building and personal growth. Troop 608 utilizes the camp facilities for troop activities as well as performing service projects throughout the year to improve their facilities. In June, Will and several work crews under his direction cleared the camp’s amphitheatre and fire pit area, painted a bridge, and installed an informational kiosk on the grounds.

Will said very eloquently in his Eagle speech:

[Troop] 608 is one of the few things that has been constant in my life since 2007.... For 10 months every year, my Thursday nights were booked. One weekend a month was always reserved for a campout. And the first week of July was always for [Camp] Sequassen. This troop remained one of the most important things to me for seven years. If anything it got more important to me.

For those interested in Troop 608, please feel free to attend a meeting on Thursday nights (7:30-9:00) at Spring Glen Church on Whitney Avenue in Hamden.