Simsbury Scout Troop 175 Gets Two New Eagles

Simsbury, CT - Simsbury Scout Troop 175 recently held a special Court of Honor to award the rank of Eagle Scout to two young men, Conor D. Bazyk and Raymond Fang Zhang. With the addition of these Eagle Scouts, 163 scouts have earned the rank since Troop 175 recognized it’s first Eagle scout in 1981 at St. Mary’s Church in Simsbury.

Eagle Scout is the highest rank attainable in the Scouting America program sponsored by the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Since its introduction in 1911, the Eagle Scout rank has been earned by more than 2.5 million youth.

Requirements include earning at least 21 merit badges and demonstrating Scout Spirit through the Boy Scout Oath and Law, service, and leadership. This includes an extensive service project that the Scout plans, organizes, leads, and manages. Eagle Scouts are presented with a medal and a badge that visibly recognizes the accomplishments of the Scout.

Eagle Scout Conor D. Bazyk

Eagle Scout Conor D. Bazyk joined the scouts as a Cub when I was in Squadron Line School with Mrs. Breslav as his den leader in Pack 174. He crossed over to Troop 175, where I was drawn to the high energy troop meetings and trips.

Some of his favorite memories were made at summer camp, or during the high stakes mission profiles, immortal trips, as well as hiking adventures including Tuckerman’s Ravine, the Presidential Traverse, and the pinnacle of his scouting journey (to date), was climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro this past summer.

Conor completed his Eagle Scout project by installing a wind phone with a covered seat along Doreen’s Path, on East Granby Memorial Trail.

Aside from his interest in scouting, Conor also enjoyed his Architecture classes at Simsbury High School. He earned fourth place for his home design in the student design competition in 2023, which he completed for my Capstone project.

Now Conor is commuting to Central College, and hopes to earn his bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering.

Eagle Scout Raymond Fang Zhang

Eagle Scout Raymond Fang Zhang has been a scout for eight years. From being a new Webelo to an Eagle Scout and senior at Simsbury High School, scouting has played a huge role in his development, encouraging himself to explore new interests through merit badges and troop trips. Raymond has learned life skills that he applies everywhere, from captaining the tennis team to leading the high school debate team.

Raymond feels he also learned so much about leadership through my Eagle Project that he never would have before. By fundraising over $1,000 and coordinating logistics and volunteers, Raymond was able to successfully build six garden beds for Gifts of Love, a local charity. As he thinks ahead of college, Raymond knows that his scouting experiences will continue to set himself up for success.