Three Boy Scouts from Norfolk Troop 80 were honored on May 20 for achieving the rank of Eagle Scout, the highest award in the Boy Scout program.

Jackson Henry, Thomas Laight and Ben Simmons were recognized at the Eagle Court of Honor ceremony held at the King Philip Middle School. The ceremony was attended by family, friends, and local dignitaries, including State Representative Marcus Vaughn and Norfolk Select Board member Jim Lehan. The ceremony was led by Scoutmaster Robert Mosley along with former Scoutmaster Adam Cambria and committee members Liz Gebhard and Joe Carone. 

Following the ceremonial formalities, in recognition of their achievements, each of the Eagle Scouts was presented with a resolution from the Massachusetts House of Representatives by Representative Marcus Vaughn. A proclamation of a special day for each Scout from the Town of Norfolk Select Board was made by Jim Lehan. State Senator Rebecca Rausch also sent an Official Citation from the Massachusetts State Senate. 

To close the ceremony each Scout received remarks from their chosen sponsor and in turn they offered thanks to the many individuals who had supported them through their Scouting journeys. Dinner followed with the opportunity for guests to review presentation boards showing each of the boys’ Scouting experiences.

To achieve the rank of Eagle, a Scout must progress through the six ranks of Scouting, complete a minimum of 21 merit badges, serve a minimum of six months in a troop leadership position, and plan, develop and give leadership to an Eagle service project that benefits his community. Historically, only 5 percent of all Boy Scouts have achieved the rank of Eagle Scout. 

Following are the community service projects completed by the Eagle Scouts.

Jackson Henry

For his project, Henry installed a walking path at Gilly’s House, a sober house for men in Wrentham. The walking path provides residents respite in nature, as they work to maintain their sobriety and long-term recovery. In addition to a wide, cleared path, there are several areas to relax, including a hammock, a bench, and a seating area. Fallen logs were repurposed to define the path and used for group seating. Bluebird houses, donated by Tom Antonellis Carpentry of Norfolk, were installed along the path. In addition, Henry, a metal fabrication student at Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High School, built and installed a large windchime along the path. Several residents shared that they can hear the windchimes while in their bedrooms at night.

Thomas Laight

Laight created a new walking/mountain bike trail in Norfolk’s Campbell Forest for his Eagle Scout project. A senior at King Philip Regional High School, Laight met with Norfolk’s Conservation Committee in order to outline his proposal and to seek their authorisation to go ahead with the project. He marked out the trail using ribbons on trees for the Conservation Committee to walk the proposed trial. Once the walkthrough had taken place and approval was given, Laight and Troop 80 Scouts went to work on creating the new trail path, removing dead wood and fallen trees, clearing leaves and other forest debris. Some fallen trees were used as path edge markers. Laight served as project manager for the Scouts, instructing them on safe working practices and outlined what they were required to do. The team of Scouts worked effectively and efficiently until the trail was complete. Finally, Laight added the walking trail to the existing wooden trail maps which are located at the two entrances for Campbell Forest, adding a layer of varnish in order to preserve the newly engraved trail plaques, and affixed new directional markers to the trees.

Ben Simmons

Simmons’ Eagle Scout project was to build two compost bins for the Norfolk Community Garden.

Simmons, a senior at King Philip Regional High School, met with Frank Zolli of the Norfolk Lions as the garden is a joint project between the Lions, the town of Norfolk and the Norfolk Grange. The garden consists of 30 beds of various sizes filled with loam and compost provided by the Norfolk Public Works Dept. Residents can rent out the beds for a small fee. 

The compost bins were needed as users of the beds had no place to discard decayed fruits and vegetables as well as general yard waste. The bins provide a valuable place to dispose of this material and generate new compost for the gardens. 

Simmons first had to research compost bins to come up with a design that was cost effective and sturdy enough to last for many years. After determining a design, he obtained the necessary wood, screws and stain to construct them. Each board had to be cut to exact sizes and put together with wood screws in a specific order. Each bin features a sliding front that can be removed to allow easy access to the compost. Once the bins were constructed, two coats of solid stain were applied.  Three Scouts helped Simmons put together the bins.