Eagle Scout's Project Updates Manchester Police Firearms Range

BRICK, NJ — A Brick Township 14-year-old received his Eagle Scout award recently after completing a project to make improvements at the Manchester Township Police Department's firearms training range.

James Michael Komsa of Troop 39 in Brick, was conferred his ranking at a Court of Honor on Aug. 19, at La Bove Grande in Lakehurst. He is the youngest Eagle Scout in the troop, which is sponsored by First Baptist Church of Laurelton, since it was rechartered in 2014. He is is a freshman at Brick Township High School, where he is enrolled in honors classes; he plans to engineering.

James joined Cub Scouts as a member of Brick Cub Scout Pack 33 when he was 7 and rose through Cub Scouts before moving to Boy Scout Troop 39 in the fall of 2015. He has earned 23 merit badges, a news release from the troop said.

His project at the firearms range, and outdoor facility used by police officers from throughout the state, included site work, rebuilding bleachers and the construction of brass sifters. The sifters are used by the police department to sift dirt and debris from spent brass shell casings. The bleachers, which were in a state of disrepair, are used for instruction and events that occur at the facility.

The project took about 130 of hours of work, with 18 fellow Scouts and leaders pitching in to complete it. James planned, coordinated and carried out the project, which was completed with a combination of donated materials and funds from an online fundraising campaign.

James is currently a member of the Order of the Arrow Japeechen Lodge and serves as Troop 39’s senior patrol leader. He has also held the positions of patrol leader, scribe, quartermaster and the national jamboree contingent assistant patrol leader. Additionally, he has successfully completed National Youth Leadership Training.

"I like the adventure as well as the life and leadership skills that I’ve learned over the years," James said of his time as a Boy Scout.

To earn the Eagle Scout rank, a Boy Scout must progress through the ranks in order; earn at least 21 merit badges; serve six months in a troop leadership position; plan, develop and give leadership to a service project; take part in a Scoutmaster conference; and successfully complete an Eagle Scout board of review, according to the Boy Scouts of America website. About 4 percent of all scouts attain the rank of Eagle Scout.

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Photos courtesy of Tom Costello, published with permission