3 New Northport Eagle Scouts Celebrated

EAST NORTHPORT, NY — Three new Eagle Scouts were recognized by Suffolk County Legislator William Spencer. Aidan Sebesta, Nicholas Lembo and Lucas Cusati celebrated their Eagle Court of Honor this past Saturday at the East Northport Fire House. All three were members of Northport Boy Scout Troop 41 and graduated from Northport High School.

For his service project, Sebesta led the construction of two large wooden cabinets for the Sweetbriar Nature Center in Smithtown, which are being used to store supplies for rehabilitating sick and injured animals, as well as platforms for cages. To fund the project, he conducted a car wash to raise money to buy supplies and negotiated prices and donations with local vendors. As a result of his excellent budgeting skills, Sebesta was able to donate more than $100 in surplus funds from the car wash to the Nature Center. He is currently a junior in the Honors Program at Fordham University majoring in history.

Lembo fixed the barn roof and overhang at the Lewis Oliver Farm in Northport, a place that holds special significance in his heart, as he spent much time there as a child visiting the farm and feeding the animals. When he discovered that the barn was in disrepair, he immediately knew that it would be the focus of his service project. The reconstruction took many hours of planning, fundraising and construction. In addition to stabilizing the structure of the barn, Lembo added gutters, created a space for chickens to scratch and painted the beams. He is currently attending Lehigh University as a computer engineering major.

Cusati tapped into his love of music for his service project, which entailed entertaining local veterans residing at the Northport VA Hospital. Over a year's time, he organized and led a group known as "SQUADRON 154," made up of more than 75 Northport High School chorus, orchestra, and band students. Together, the squadron provided a series of 12 concerts to entertain veterans with the gift of music. Cusati is a Rose Scholar at Cornell University studying computer science.

"The life skills, leadership qualities, perseverance, and character developed by these gentlemen as they worked their way up to achieve the rank of Eagle Scout will stay with them for the rest of their lives," Spencer said via press release. "We thank them for their commitment to bettering our community and wish each of them continued success in all future endeavors."