Among the most challenging requirements for achieving the Eagle Scout is it’s project; at least, it was for our boys. Our sons had enough merit badges, time in service, leadership and all, but the pesky service project stopped us dead in the water. Neither of them could find anything interesting enough to give the time, service and leadership to—sad to say, I was less help then, than I will be to you in this article.
First, the real keys are personal interest and leadership. The year I earned my Eagle in 1965 was the first of the service project. The new application said: “While a Life Scout, plan, develop, and carry out a service project helpful to your church or synagogue, school, or community.” My interests were beginning to center around the environment, mostly from the Soil and Water Conservation and Nature merit badges, so mine was an erosion control project.
Not every Scout knows his interest, so in their eagerness to get the Eagle complete, many parents force their son into something that may not interest them. But the application says that “while you are a Life Scout, plan, develop, and give leadership to others in a service project helpful to any religious institution, any school, or your community.” So that’s the second key, the Scout needs to plan and develop the project, not his parents or Scout leader. Then he has to give leadership to make the project happen, which means this is less about the service project and more about the process of growth and leadership.
My Project Finder—a handy tool to find your son’s interests
Dave Harkins, who works for the BSA’s National Supply Group, created a Web site to help boys and girls come up with ideas for Eagle Scout or Venturing Summit Award projects. This site is one of his Wood Badge ticket items. It is a “decision tree” that lets users answer two or three simple questions about their interests and passions.
Once they do that, the site suggests several potential project ideas. It’s a great resource, and it’s available for free by clicking here. Check it out!
(Thanks to Bryan Wendell for this tip. You can also view his Facebook page, where fans submitted many more great ideas. Click here to see them.)
Samples from 2015 Approved Eagle Applications in our Council
Below is a compilation of Eagle Scout service projects completed by Scouts in our Council this year. The projects included are not presented in full detail. They are simple short descriptions provided to show the type, range and diversity of service projects. It is hoped that this list will help give some ideas and point in the direction of a project that will work well for the Life Scout. There are still many more ideas just waiting for an Eagle candidate to identify.
Carlos Eduardo Hernandez, of Orem, is now 18 years old and was part of Troop 798 when he received his Eagle. For his project
Carlos Hernandez brought the donated books to Byington Reading Room in Salt Lake City for children with little access to books.
he donated books to Byington Reading Room in Salt Lake City. “By collecting books from ward members, friends and family, we delivered a total of 3,200 books for kids and young adults. We had a total of 99.28 hours of service recorded! I was nervous to be in charge, but I love reading and wanted my project to be meaningful to others. These books are given to kids who don’t have access to them. While I was delivering them, kids were coming in to get their free book. They were very excited and I was happy for them.”
Alex Jason Crandall, of Mapleton. For his Eagle Scout project, Alex helped build and repair bunks beds for the needy in Mexico. They took 10 bunk beds to Mexico.
Connor M Sandstrom, 15, of Highland. Hosted CPR classes for 100 people.
Clint Michael Davis, of Spanish Fork. Made a video to teach people how to read the expiration dates on food cans and gathered food for a local food bank.
Alex Jerron Marchant, of Spanish Fork. Collected breakfast food for a local food bank and got people together to serve for one dinner meal.
Jesse Richard Gathercoal, of Spanish Fork. Sanded, painted and put wheels on little cars to be sent out to poor countries.
Aaron Wayman, 17, Ephraim. Built and carved school mascot into podium for new Ephraim Elementary School.
Holland Grant Morley, of Spanish Fork. Took out all of the shrubbery and bushes as well as the ground cover around the Spanish Fork LDS Stake Center in preparation for the new landscaping.
Jackson Rulon Francis, of Mapleton. Built bookshelves for Sierra Bonita Elementary School.
Gabriel E Crosby, 18, of Cedar Hills. Worked to size and scope the project. Proceeded as planned, gave directions to volunteers and succeeded as planned.
Troop 640 a helping with Jacob Dorton’s Eagle Scout project for Shriner’s Hospital
Jacob Dorton, 13, from Troop 640, chartered by Orem Canyonview Seventh Ward, built catapults as children’s toys for Shriners Hospital in Salt Lake City. These catapults help patients build their muscles.
Brandon D Crapo, of Cedar Hills, age 17. Collected books for Timp Regional Hospital.
Caleb Call, 17, Manti. Sanded and painted 20 chairs and 2 tables for Manti Library’s Children’s corner.
Ryan Jay Williams, of Mapleton. Collected clothes, toys, and food for a local crisis center.
Brecken K Wiltbank, 15, of Lehi. Collected, sorted and donated two Hallmark trailer loads of clothing, infant items and household items for The Road Home Community Winter Shelter.
Easton B Halliday, 16, of Lehi. Cleaned up weeds and trash at Lakeview Academy playgrounds
Benjamin J Preece, of Elk Ridge, age 15. Provided canes for the residents of the Parkway Health Care Facility.
J Russell Nelson Jr., of Highland, age 17. Emergency Preparedness Fair for LDS Ward.
Jared S Gricius, of Highland, age 18. Police emergency child kits.
Quinn S Christensen, of Lehi, age 17. Made school kits for the Dream Team to take to the Dominican Republic.
Residents in care at Medallion Manor enjoy concert
Tristan James Torgersen, 18 years old and is part of Crew 783 chartered by the Provo Sunset Eleventh Ward. My project was a musical recital held as entertainment at a home for people with disabilities. I had friends and family come sing and dance and play instruments for these special children and they enjoyed it so much! Afterward we met and talked with the residents. It was life changing to see how much they appreciated our time and talents. Some of these people hardly ever get to meet visitors and it is so exciting and beneficial for them to be able to come into contact with others. I could really see how this project changed lives.
Kurt D Decker, of Lehi, age 14. Created a wood post, treated wood and cement barrier to prevent erosion on path.
Joel T Woolley, of Orem, age 14. Made 250 fleece blankets for Utah Valley Regional Medical Cneter’s Pediatric unit.
Robert Steven Smith, of Orem, age 17. Project for Tiny Tims Foundation.
Kurtis A Hammer, of Orem, age 17. Cleaned, inventoried and labeled more than 12,500 books at Orchard Elementary Library.
Richard D Hill, of Orem, age 18. Replaced smoke detectors in over 150 homes for LDS Church.
Bridger J Tinsley, of Orem, age 15. Ran the Red Ribbon Week activities for five days at lunchtime at Hillcrest Elementary School.
Ryan S VandenBos, of Orem, age 14. Organized a soccer camp for five days.
Braden Hancey, 18, of Eagle Mountain. Collected action figures and toys for children at Primary Children’s Hospital Heroes for Heroes program.
Kaleb Sweeten and other Scouts in Troop 894 working on the parking lot of the North County Animal Shelter for his Eagle Scout project.
Kaleb Sweeten, 17, of Crew 894 sponsored by the Orem Northridge Fourth Ward, worked on the North Utah Valley Animal Shelter renovation. He cleaned and renovated the North County Animal Shelter’s parking lot and purchased vaccinations for the shelter. “By fundraising with my troop and with the generous donations of companies within the community, I was able to re-stripe the parking lot, paint fire hydrants, clean entrance signs and purchase several hundred vaccinations for the animals.: He was was able to donate paint and supplies to the shelter so they will be able to maintain the safety of the parking lot in the future.
Kollin Pemberton, 18, of Eagle Mountain. Collected, sorted and cleaned children’s books and bookcases to put in dentists’ waiting rooms.
Braden Van Alfen, 17, of Highland. Cut white boards and material into handheld white boards for Mountainville Academy.
Dylan Wooden, 15, of Highland. Raised $2,400 to provide 24 wagons for patients of Primary Children’s Hospital to improve their lives.
Brock McChesney, 14, of Highland. Organized, fund raised, purchased, and arranged for delivery of food boxes for 30 needy families in the area for Christmas.
Spencer T Holmes, 14, of Highland. Provided Lone Peak Baseball with a safe, maintainable and landscaped bridge across the Pleasant Grove canal
Connor Pearson, 18, of Lehi. Built two portable display tables for Hutchings Museum.
Gavin Clifton, 12, of Lehi. Cleaned and painted 483 linear feet of curbing for bus parking at Eagle Crest Elementary in Lehi.
Jake H Winkel, 16, of Lindon. Helped with Lindon baseball scoreboard, trenching and power.
William Zachary Bennett, 14, of Mapleton. Did the yellow Dot Program that is designed to help emergency responders.
Ethan Jones, of Lehi, is 16 years old and is part of Crew 1247, chartered by Traverse Mountain Seventh Ward, built a new hiking and equestrian trail at Corner Canyon in Draper. “I mountain bike in Corner Canyon all of the time and I really love the area. Since I am up there often, I started thinking of projects I could do up in that area. I contacted Draper public works and they told me of the making of this new trail. I was all for it, so I organized a bunch of Scouts from my ward and we worked two separate days cutting down trees, clearing brush and paving a path. This project will benefit the community by creating an enjoyable trail for people to come hike and bring their horses to.”
Austin Ryan Livingston, 14, of Mapleton. Built bookshelves for Sierra Bonita Elementary School.
Ryan Mortensen, 16, of Orem. Designed and made 10 wooden puzzles for special needs children.
Landon Tolman, 18, of Orem. Painted house numbers on curbs for the Geneva Heights Second Ward area.
Jaxon Bretzing, 16, of Orem. Designed and built eight large wooden lawn chess games for special education and PE students.
Trevor Fielding, 15, of Orem. Put in cement pads and installed park benches
Joseph C Capener, 18, of Saratoga Springs. Organized, supervised and participated in a community variety show including a jazz band, instrumental music, vocal and ballroom dance performances for a senior citizens care center.
James W Lakko, 18, of Provo. Improved Canyon Glen amphitheater by clearing dirt, debris and weeds in seating and surrounding area, replacing rotted support planks, repairing seating, laying slag to restore floor, and applying anti-graffiti epoxy paint to stage wall.
James W West, 18, of Saratoga Springs. Collected many bags of clothing for The Road Home homeless shelter in Salt Lake City.
Joseph C Salomone, 17, of Eagle Mountain. Set posts on trails in part of Eagle Mountain to mark mileage for runners.
Bryce K Peterson, 17, of Saratoga Springs. Made, stuffed and sewed 100 dolls for the children at Primary Children’s Hospital.
Steven C Peterson, 14, of Saratoga Springs. Built wooden toy puzzles for Kids on the Move.
Michael J Paletta, 17, of Saratoga Springs. Organized construction and donation of 68 fleece blankets to Intermountain Health Care to distribute in their hospital system.
Timothy C Forsyth, 18, of Saratoga Springs. Organized and supervised making 90 fleece blankets for Primary Children’s Hospital.
Bronson S Woodmansee, 18, of Eagle Mountain. Supervised making 101 treat bags and collected candy bars, fruit snacks, small chip bags and other treats to stuff bags for 4th District Juvenile Justice Drug Court.
Nicolas N Billman, 17, of Saratoga Springs. Supervised the making of 20 T-stools for Early Intervention program at Kids on the Move to help ADHD youth to focus.
Joseph E Hegstrom-Pratt, 17, of Provo. Planned and carried out an evening of entertainment for the clients at RAH.
David B Johnson, 18, of Lindon. Collected supplies for activity and comfort for those in waiting room at Orem Community Hospital.
Keith Martineau, 15, of Pleasant Grove. Reinforced city irrigation ditch with concrete.
Nicholas Jaccard, 18, of Pleasant Grove. Made bean bag catapults for Kids on the Move.
Konor Hamilton, 16, of Pleasant Grove. Collected school supplies for schools in Mali, West Africa.
Joshua Gardner, 16, of Lindon. Organized a clothing drive for Builders Without Borders.
Zac Slater, 17, of Lindon. Built baseball backstops for Lindon City.
Browning Perkins, 13, of Pleasant Grove. Gave emergency gas shut off keys to the Pleasant Grove Fire Department.
James Chugg, 16, of Pleasant Grove. Hosted an emergency preparedness fair.
Noah Dunford, 15, of Pleasant Grove. Collected phonics phones for Manila Elementary.
Kalobe T Selu, 18, of Lehi. Organized a food drive for the Salt Lake Rescue Mission.
Reid K Dickson, 18, of Provo. Collected needed materials for a US Navy Seals family charity.
Samuel Clements, 18, of Orem. Helped with an art room easel clean-up.
Braden Alder, 17, of Orem. Helped with the Cascade Library book revitalization.
Jeffrey Reeves, 18, of Orem. Organized a Ghana hygiene kit project.
Benjamin Muhlestein, 18, of Orem. Collected emergency kits.
Caleb Boyack, 17, of Orem. Helped with the Foothill music program.
Tennijsen Neil, 18, of Orem. Collected hospital survival and writers kits for parents.
Blake Harris, 18, of Orem. Helped with garden work and made an irrigation ditch for a refugee garden.
Cade Young, 18, of Orem. Helped with a youth baseball snack shack cleanup.
Lukas Hinkson, 18, of Orem. Made a hope garden.
Emerson Knight, 14, of Orem. Collected 80 new and used board games and repaired and labeled them. Then built a bean bag toss game for the Aspen Grove family campground.
Nathan Fairbanks, 18, of Orem. Made 106 backpacks for disadvantaged kids in Brazil.
Christian Fairbanks, 15, of Orem. Painted a United States map on the playground so kids could learn each state.
Zachary Spencer, 18, of Orem. Made 500 individual packs for children in Haiti.
Caleb Horton, 16, of Orem. Made bookshelf and donated 25 boxes of books to Help Me Grow program.
Jacob Keith Lundskog, 18, of Midway. Worked on the Meadows Wetland cleanup and restoration.
Zachary Dean Lewis, 17, of American Fork. Collected school supplies, clothes and shoes, which he delivered to an orphanage in Ecuador.Connor Joseph Merritt, 15, of American Fork. Made fleece blankets for children at Utah Valley Medical Center.
Nathan Andrew Cornell, 18, of American Fork. Scraped, sanded and painted benches in city park and planted three trees in the cemetery.
Jordan Hicken, 18, of American Fork. Developed a plan and painted the curbs at the Developmental Center.
Corwyn Alexander Giles, 14, of American Fork. Collected materials and made pillow cases for the American Fork Hospital Pediatric Unit.
Steven Mark Rich, 18, of American Fork. Dug out tree rings around trees and filled them in with bark mulch at Pony Fields in American Fork.
Kayden J Miller, 18, of American Fork. Organized event where people cleaned and painted 21 fire hydrants.
Austin S. Lefler, 13, of American Fork. Planted trees in American Fork Cemetery and then invited a fifth grade class from Shelly Elementary to participate along with key city officials in an Arbor Day Celebration.
Jacob William Miller, 17, of Lehi. Pressure washed and painted the interior of the Lehi Rodeo grounds food stands.
Rhett Dallas Jacobs, 17, of Lehi. Beautified the House of Hope.
Brandt Ryan Gibson, 18, of Lehi. Made quilts to be used by patients at the American Fork Hospital.
Samuel Gresham Solomon, 17, of Lehi. Collected, organized and distributed cleaning supplies and made blankets for distribution to low income families.
Lloyd Earl Evans, 17, of Lehi. Collected, created and delivered 150 journals for Primary Children’s Hospital patients.
Layton Garn Evans, 17, of Lehi. Collected and cut out die cuts to make 150 crown and mask kits for patients at Primary Children’s Hospital.
Brandon Smith, 17, of Springville. Beautified Wayne Bartholomew Park.
Tyler Averett, 17, of Springville. Improved trail head signs and fences for US Forest Service.
Spencer Allan, 17 of Springville. Worked on the Great Basin Wildlife Rescue.
Noah Grigg, 17, of Springville. Planted 1,500 shrubs for Utah State Hospital.
Clayton R Hinds, 18, of Cedar Hills. Produced blankets and gathered clothing for humanitarian expedition for Eagle Humanitarian.
Garrett M Prescott, 14, of Cedar Hills. Produced plaster of Paris figures for children to paint at Primary Children’s Hospital.
Richard C Gee, 17, of Cedar Hills. Led and participated in the refurbishing of four horseshoe pits at the Tinney Flat Campground in Santaquin Canyon.
For boys, 21 merit badges, 20 days and nights of camping and all the rest may seem enough. And for many, that’s about when the Scout and his mom throw up their hands and say, “I give up!,” but don’t. Go back over those merit badges he earned, look at what’s interesting him at school or in his hobbies, use My Project Finder site to discover interests and review the list above. Once you find your son’s highest interest among all those sources the project will reveal itself to you. I promise it’s worth the thought and discovery with your son to help him find just the right thing to use as an Eagle Service project.
Scouters, what are the best Eagle Scout projects completed by Scouts in Troop, Team or Crew? Help add to the list by sharing your favorite ideas in the comment section and help future Eagles!
Author: Darryl Alder | Director of Strategic Initiatives, Utah National Parks Council, BSA
The post 100 More Eagle Service Projects appeared first on The Boy Scout | Utah National Parks Council Official Blog.