Record number of Rochester troop members become Eagle Scouts

ROCHESTER — When six boy scouts from Rochester’s Troop 31 became Eagle Scouts this year, they joined the mere 2% of scouts who achieve the highest level of the program. 

An Eagle Court of Honor was held July 18 at Rochester Grange Hall to celebrate the accomplishments of Eddie Brown, Casey Cash, Bryan Correia, Cole Gretton, Josh Van Inwegen and Iain McManus. 

Troop leader Kevin Thompson said he is “exceptionally proud” of the six new Eagle Scouts, and has seen them grow into accomplished young men since they joined the troop. 

“I'm very optimistic about their futures,” he said during the ceremony. “I fully believe that they are going to succeed better than probably even me and a lot of us (troop leaders) because of what they've done and the work they have completed with this eagle accomplishment.”

The projects these scouts completed as part of their Eagle Scout requirements included honoring veterans, protecting local wildlife and helping to track environmental changes. 

Brown chose to build 12 bat houses for his project, some of which he donated to MassWildlife and some of which will be placed around town. His goal was to support the brown bat population, which is at risk of extinction. 

He said his project was inspired by a presentation a MassWildlife representative gave.

“She came to the Sippican Rod & Gun, which I'm a part of, and gave a big presentation on brown bats,” Brown said. “I just really took an interest, because I like animals.”

He said it took a long time to become an Eagle Scout, and celebrating his achievement at the court of honor felt good. 

Cash’s project replaced the Middleboro Animal Shelter’s donation bin, which had been in bad condition. 

He promised the facility manager there that he would complete his project for the shelter when his older brother completed his own Eagle Scout project.

“I built it because I like dogs,” he said. “My parents won't let me have any, but I like animals in general, and I just try and help the animals out.”

The day’s culmination of his efforts made him feel good, he said, and he appreciated the friends he made as a scout and making his parents proud. 

Correia joined two friends from a different troop to help repair a boat docked at Battleship Cove in Fall River. He cleaned and painted one of the boat’s decks, and said it is a way to honor the veterans and help the next generation learn about the country’s past. 

While he could have become an Eagle Scout last year, he said he waited to complete his requirements so he could become one at the same time as many of his friends in the troop. 

“They're my close friends now, so I wanted to be able to celebrate this with them,” Correia said. “I'm relieved that finally this happened, but I know that my life as a scout is not over.”

Gretton also chose a project honoring the past, dedicating his time to cleaning headstones at Evergreen Cemetery in Marion. 

“I just loved that idea of being able to remember the dead — I'm a morbid person — and make sure their legacy lives on,” he said. 

He enlisted the help of several other Eagle Scout candidates in his troop, along with people outside the troop and the support of the Marion Department of Public Works, to clean stones that dated back to the 1800s.

Gretton said it felt “surreal” to reach the highest level of scouting and know his time as a troop member is over.

Van Inwegen built a portable welcome desk for the Community Boating Center of New Bedford to give the nonprofit a more professional appearance at events. 

He began working for the group last year, and said he wanted to support its mission of providing sailing education and access for low-income children.

Van Inwegen said he’s proud of the hard work it took to become an Eagle Scout and will continue displaying the leadership skills he learned as a scout.

“I'm excited that after all however many years I've been doing this for, that it has paid off,” he said. 

McManus’s project was building photo posts for the Sippican Lands Trust — wooden posts used to prop up a phone and take a series of photos to create a panoramic view of a location. 

They will be used to monitor the area and help researchers track long-term changes. 

“I chose it in particular because I care deeply about the environment,” he said. “I'm going to study environmental science in college, so I thought it would be a great way to get my feet in the water.”

He said even though he’s not a prideful person, he is proud of becoming an Eagle Scout and feels “very accomplished.”