ADAMS TOWNSHIP — Clinton-Massie student Bryce Hensley, who’s been in Scouts since the first grade and “always wanted to be an Eagle Scout,” accomplished his Eagle Service Project outside the elementary school building.
While looking for a project, his mother and CM first-grade teacher Danielle Hensley came home one night and told him that Elementary School Assistant Principal Shelley Bailey wanted a little shelter for student pickups.
Bryce thought it was a good idea and his search was over.
He started talking with high school industrial arts teacher Dan Walker, and together they utilized CAD software to get a basic design for the shelter structure. CAD stands for Computer-Aided Design, and is a way to digitally create 2D drawings and 3D models of actual products before they’re built.
He sent the design to the assistant principal, the superintendent and the district’s support staff supervisor and received approval.
In fact, Supt. Matt Baker commended Scout leadership because he could tell Bryce had been taught what to do to obtain acceptance of the project, and then keep school officials updated on what came next during the construction process.
A few changes were made to keep costs and waste down, Bryce told Clinton-Massie school board members this week in a presentation.
He prepared a supply list and one store gave him a discount on most items, and a regional metal business donated all the needed metal, saying they don’t get many Eagle projects and they really like to assist.
In October, Bryce began building off-site at a fellow Scout member’s barn where all the supplies were kept and it was easier than starting on campus.
The tough part was planning and getting everybody’s schedule lined up and making sure he had everything, he said.
“It was pretty tough in the cold, everything being brittle and hands not working right, but we got it done which is good,” said Bryce.
By the end of the project, he had learned a lot about how to lead and plan, “and a lot about metal work,” he said.
For an Eagle Scout project, the purpose is to plan, develop, and lead others, so he didn’t do all the work on his own. He had some younger Scouts and some Scouts in his patrol come out and, under his leadership, he had them do what they could.
The metal work was mainly for older Scouts, he explained.
In his talk, Bryce recalled that after he and his peers went through the Cub Scout bridge crossover ceremony marking their completion in Cub Scouting, they named their patrol the Eagle Patrol, he said.
Once he officially attains the rank of Eagle Scout, four out of eight of them will be Eagles, with possibly a fifth one who might earn it as well. The Eagle Patrol, indeed.
At the end of his presentation, Bryce thanked school officials for allowing him to do the project “to help me reach my goal.”
Reach Gary Huffenberger at 937-556-5768.
