2024 Eagle Scout Service Project of the Year
The Eagle Scout Service Project of the Year (ESSPY) was established by the Glenn and Melinda Adams through the National Eagle Scout Association (NESA). Examples of projects that have been selected for the ESSPY include projects that benefited underprivileged children, recognized veterans, were international in nature, and have required significant time and resources.
Samoset Council, our Council Service Territory, and NESA use the following criteria for consideration of the ESSPY:
- Project planning required.
- Effort to develop the project, taking into account challenges overcome by the Scout such as disability or limited financial capacity for the Scout/Scout family.
- Extent and character of leadership provided by the Scout.
- Extent of achievement of the planned result, including changes or modifications required to complete the project.
- Project’s impact on the beneficiary and/or on the community at large.
- Did the project create a “leverage opportunity” where it inspires others to expand the scope of the project.
- Originality of the project.
- Scope of the work.
- Time and materials contributed.
- Level of skill employed to complete the project.
Cat & Dog Toys for the Marathon County Humane Society
Scout: Warren R.
For my project, I designed and produced a total of 20 dog toys, two cat scratching posts and two cat batting toys. The primary objective behind this endeavor is to provide ample entertainment for the dogs and cats residing at the Marathon County Humane society. Enrichment toys are beneficial for both the animals physical and mental well-being. It has been shown that enrichment toys help to eliminate stress in shelter animals.
These toys will keep the dogs and cats of the Marathon County Humane Society entertained. It is essential to keep pets entertained because, besides keeping your pet in good physical condition, exercise acts as the equalizer against all destructive behaviors, helping to keep a variety of problems-like inappropriate elimination, anxiety, eating disorders, attention seeking, aggression, and barking at bay. This will help reduce costs from broken equipment and will reduce the amount of manual labor. This will happen because there will be less mess to clean, and less barking which is a big problem at the humane society.
Create Food Pantry for Rib Mountain Lutheran Church
Scout: Luke H.
My Eagle Scout Project was starting a food pantry at Rib Mountain Lutheran Church. I raised funds for metal shelving by cleaning the church myself. I led volunteers into moving furniture and other storage items out of the room as well as building the metal shelving on January 27th. On March 22, 2025, I filled the shelving with food and toiletries for the first time. My goal was to fill the shelves with 100 pounds worth of food and toiletries. I achieved this goal by asking several businesses for donations. One of those businesses was the Dollar Tree where they would ask customers if they would like to buy items to donate for the pantry. This allowed the community and chance to donate starting at the beginning of February and ending on March 22nd. On March 22nd, I also ran a food drive at Rib Mountain Lutheran Church from 9:00 AM to 12:00, while sorting, weighing, and organizing donations. In total, 1,100 pounds (1,478 items) of hygiene and food products were raised and gathered for the food pantry. The pantry will hopefully play a large role in helping families and individuals who need support and receive it, and benefit those who need assistance for many years to come.
Leopold Benches for Monk Gardens
Scout: Ava S.
I made 12 Leopold benches for Monk Garden’s amphitheater area. Previously, there were logs in place as “benches” for kids to sit on during lessons. These new benches look better, have back rests, and are movable providing many new opportunities in the amphitheater area.
