Troop 41 honors three new Eagle Scouts

Troop 41 Eagle Scouts Alex Davis of Avon Lake, James Fell of Bay Village and Nathan Cullinan of Bay Village

Boy Scout Troop 41 of Bay Village presented the Eagle Scout award to three young men at a ceremony in Bethesda-on-the-Bay Lutheran Church on Sunday, June 30. The Eagle Scout award is the highest-ranking award in Boy Scouting. The three recipients were Alexander James Davis of Avon Lake, James Blakely Fell and Nathan Samuel Cullinan, both from Bay Village.

Mr. Carl Meermans, Scoutmaster of Troop 41, presided over the Eagle Court of Honor. The Reverend Dennis Stylski, Eagle Scout and pastor of Bethesda-on-the-Bay Lutheran Church, offered opening prayers that were followed by highlights of the road to Eagle Scout. Nationally, only about 4 percent of Scouts achieve this goal. In order to be considered for the Eagle rank, a scout must satisfy certain criteria. These include a minimum of 21 merit badges, of which 12 are required; demonstration of leadership positions in the troop; planning and implementation of an Eagle service project; character references with at least five letters of recommendation and the approval of a district-level Eagle Board of Review.

In addition to family and friends, several honored guests presented Alex, James and Nathan with awards and proclamations. Commander Fred Zeager and Mr. Jim Potter, past post commander, presented the new Eagle Scouts with a flag from American Legion Post 385. Mr. Fred Green, commander of VFW Post 9693 of Bay Village also honored Alex, James and Nathan with special proclamations. Mayor Debbie Sutherland of Bay Village and Mayor Greg Zilka of Avon Lake awarded the Eagles with proclamations from their respective cities. The Eagle Scout recipients of Troop 41 were honored by special commendations from Cuyahoga County Council Dave Greenspan.

On a state level, both House Representative Nan Baker and Ohio Senator Tom Patton participated in the Court of Honor and congratulated Alex, James and Nathan with special proclamations. Flags flown over the U.S. Capitol Building were provided by Congresswomen Marcy Kaptur and letters of commendation were sent to the three Eagle Scouts by federal, state and local leaders.

The three Eagle projects benefitted local organizations. For his Eagle project, James managed the donation, rehabilitation and transportation of over 40 bicycles to the Berea Children’s Home for use by the residents for both recreation and transportation to jobs. Alex’s Eagle project involved constructing two wooden benches which now provide the pre-school children of Bay United Methodist Church a place to sit to remove their shoes and boots. Nathan’s Eagle project consisted of rehabbing and painting the barn at the Bay Boat Club to benefit the Bay Sailing Club. All three scouts spent numerous hours with the help of family, friends and fellow scouts to complete these important projects in their community.

Both James and Alex are recent 2013 high school graduates. James graduated from Bay High School and Alex graduated from Avon Lake High School.

James is the son of Jim and Sally Fell of Bay Village. He plans to attend John Carroll University next year to study entrepreneurship and participate on the JCU track and cross-country teams. Nathan’s parents are Tim and Heidi Cullinan of Bay Village. Nathan will continue his studies at Bay High School as a junior this fall. Alex is the son of Jackie Davis of Avon Lake. Alex plans to attend Lorain County Community College this fall, where he will study computer maintenance and networking. He looks forward to continued leadership duties with Troop 41.

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Volume 5, Issue 14, Posted 9:50 AM, 07.09.2013