Court of Honor planned for 6 new Eagle Scouts
La Cañada Boy Scout Troop 507 is readying for an upcoming Eagle Scout Court of Honor for six of its members: Luke Bender, Cameron Carey, Noah Ford, Ethan Harp, William Henderson and Henry Vaughn.
Troop 507 is a High Adventure, Scout-led troop at St. Bede Church, so each of the new Eagle Scouts is a skilled outdoorsman.
Bender, a student at St. Francis High School, has held leadership roles within the troop and reports that, among other activities, he’s experienced 101 camping nights.
For his Eagle project, Bender restored a statue of the Virgin Mary and its surrounding area at his church. The work entailed rebuilding the statue’s base and wall, building a roof and adding lighting, irrigation and roses around it.
Carey is in his senior year at La Cañada High. His most memorable experiences with the troop involved his attendance two Boy Scout National Jamborees and the World Jamboree in Japan in 2015.
Like Bender, Carey chose to focus on the grounds of St. Bede Church for his Eagle project. He refurbished several benches and planted 23 rose bushes. He completed his work and reached the Eagle Scout ranch in February 2018.
Ford is a senior at La Cañada High who, as a member of Troop 507, has earned 30 merit badges and served as patrol leader, quarter master and instructor. He’s a veteran of two Boy Scout Jamborees and has gone on several rafting trips with the troop.
Descanso Gardens benefited from Ford’s Eagle project, which consisted of rebuilding a 700-foot stone border wall around one of its creeks, an effort that required 92 hours of labor.
Harp, also a La Cañada High senior, has enjoyed his travels and hiking activities with Troop 507. He hopes to study economics when he attends college.
Having once been a student at La Cañada Elementary School, Harp identified work needed there for his Eagle Project. With the help of other Scouts and his family members, he refurbished and installed new hook boards on the exterior of the buildings where students can now hang their backpacks.
Henderson, a La Cañada High senior, has taken on leadership roles with Troop 507 and has participated in at least 17 Eagle projects over the years. He’s been to two National Jamborees and a World Jamboree and participated in the 2019 Rose Parade.
For his Eagle project, Henderson built a veteran’s memorial garden for Harambe Ministries in Altadena. The work included refurbishing existing irrigation, planting the garden, constructing an entry path and installing lighting, benches and a war memorial plaque.
Vaughn, also a senior at La Cañada High, was drawn to Troop 507 because of its backpacking and camping trips. He participated in several, from the weekend outings to the longer excursions, which took him to Cherry Valley, Philmont and the National Jamboree.
For Vaughn’s Eagle project he expanded on landscaping work at St. James the Less Church that had earlier been undertaken by Brent Ellis, another Troop 507 Eagle Scout. Vaughn enlisted the help of others for the beautification project.
The Court of Honor will be held at 4 p.m. Sunday, March 24 at La Cañada Presbyterian Church. To learn more about Troop 507, visit troop507.net.
