Page 18 September 2013 Scout earns his Eagle, gains friendship and pride By Cristina Peralta With the help of family, friends and fellow Boy Scouts of America Troop No. 6, an Arcadia High School student has earned his Eagle Scout rank. Ian Chesnut, 17, has been an active scout for 10 years alongside his brother Brian, 19. To achieve his Eagle Scout ranking, Chesnut completed a project benefitting The Family School, a preschool and kindergarten childhood center. Chesnut planned, supervised and implemented a remodel for the surface of the school’s playground, which was deemed outdated and unsafe by the city of Phoenix. The project included extending a small path with fine granite, painting and cleaning the windows of the school and helping to clean up parts of the campus. The project took more than 225 hours. “Once it was all over, and I got my Eagle, everything was a relief,” Ian said. “It was all totally worth it in the end.” Some call Troop 6 the Eagle Factory. Base to more than 100 scouts, the troop houses the most Eagle Scouts in the nation and is one of the most well-established in the state. Several of the scouts attend AHS. The Chesnut brothers joined the Cub Scouts in first grade. Both parents were in the military and the family moved about every 16 months. “It was a constant that we had from place to place. Everywhere we went, there was felt that the Boy Scouts is an important venue for my boys because of the opportunities it introduces to possible future career fields and interests that are not afforded anywhere else, especially not in schools.” Brian earned his Eagle rank when he was 18. “I didn’t understand at the time why our parents were so insistent about us earning our Eagle,” Brian said. “Looking back on a Boy Scout troop and we always made a lot of friends through that stuff,” Ian said. “When everything was changing, it was that one thing that we had and knew.” The brothers’ mother Mindy said she pushed her sons since they were young to earn their Eagle Scout rank. “Scouting provides boys the opportunity to volunteer and give back to their communities as well as teaching patriotism,” Mindy said. “I have always it now, they made time out of their own personal lives to help us out. They knew it was for the best.” Brian’s project entailed renovating the news set used for broadcast announcements at Arcadia High School where he was part of the news team. “During your project, when you’re watching everything being put together and everyone is building, you’re not allowed to do any work because the point of the project is leadership,” Brian said. “You’re supposed to be able to demonstrate that you can tell a group of people how to do something, effectively work with them and make sure the project goes as planned.” The Chesnut brothers had the help of fellow scouts Phillip Gough-Stone, 17, and Wes Spencer, 16. The two also are AHS students. Stone currently is working on his Eagle project, while Spencer is thinking of ideas. “I think more than anything, I’d like to give back and help people with what I was given, because it’s definitely made me who I am,” Stone said. “I wouldn’t be in the spot I am today without the massive amounts of help that everyone has given me.” Spencer said he would like to pursue a future with the Boy Scouts. “I want to become a scout leader when I’m an adult, and I’ll definitely put my kids through it. It’d be a really cool experience,” Spencer said. Mindy said she hopes her sons take on career with the Boy Scouts. For now, though, the brothers are pursuing their dreams in filmmaking and music. Ian (left) stands with the team who helped him with his Eagle Scout project. + + + 3703 East Indian School n Phoenix, AZ 85018 602.957.9910 salonsandoval.com Hair and Makeup by Chris Sandoval An URGENT CARE for your hair and your spirit! PHOTOG’S CHOICE! Due 9/30 Due 9/ /30 SUBMIT ENTRIES AT ARCADIAPIX.COM ARCADIA NEWS PHOTO CONTEST

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