The Gunston School recently received three hand-crafted wooden picnic tables from senior Aidan Myers, as part of his Eagle Scout service project. The new tables are situated near the waterfront under a cluster of trees, offering shade and a great place to eat lunch or have outdoor class.
“When I was first planning my project, I had to think about an organization that could use some form of help and one that meant something to me,” Myers explains. “Around this same time, the COVID-19 pandemic was starting to cause the world to shut down. The more I thought, the more I realized that Gunston could really use extra outdoor seating due to the pandemic, and as a current student, working with the school obviously meant something to me.”
Myers joined the Scouts BSA in first grade and has spent the last ten years moving up the ranks, with each advancement requiring the completion of a different skill set and level of community service. According to the Scouts’ website, in order to become an Eagle Scout, applicants must amass 21 or more badges, propose, plan, and carry out an Eagle service project, write several essays, be in a leadership position for at least six months, gather five recommendation letters, and undergo an Eagle board of review before their application is approved at the national level. According to Scouting Magazine, only 6.49% of eligible Scouts earned Eagle in 2018, and only 4% overall since the organization’s founding.
Aidan Myers ’21 recently donated three hand-crafted wooden picnic tables to the Gunston School as part of his Eagle Scout service project.
With the service project officially completed, Myers is working to gather all of the necessary paperwork and schedule his review with the board. “The hardest part of the process so far though, was definitely moving in the middle of trying to complete this process,” said Myers. “For nine years, I lived in Annapolis, so the troop I’m a part of is also located there, Troop 366. Over the summer of 2019, we moved from Annapolis to Centreville and it has been difficult trying to continue to work with my troop when I don’t live near them anymore.”
However, Myers took this obstacle in stride and still managed to construct and deliver the picnic tables, despite the logistics (and a pandemic) with a little help from friends. “Friel’s Lumber, a fellow Gunston family, donated the materials for one of the tables,” said Myers, who raised the money for the other two tables.
“We are grateful for Aidan’s donation and impressed with his carpentry skills,” said Head of School John Lewis. “It requires a lot of commitment and dedication to meet all of the Eagle Scout requirements, and we are delighted to have more outdoor space for students and faculty to use.”
Founded in 1911, The Gunston School is an independent, nonprofit, nonsectarian, coeducational, college preparatory high school located in Centreville, Maryland. Visit gunston.org for more information.
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