Local Scout Troop #375-8375 held their first Court of Honor in several years on May 28, 2024.

At the ceremony and reception held at St. Francis of Assisi, Unity Place Hall, an unusually large number of Scouts – five – were recognized for achieving the level of Eagle Scout. The pinnacle of Scout honors, this level is achieved by less than four percent of all Scouts participating in the national organization each year.

An ebullient crowd of family, friends, fellow scouts and leaders gathered to mark the accomplishments of these five Burien area teens, many of whom have been working toward this goal since 2012. Prior to the dignified ceremony, the buzzing crowd of attendees were treated to a fun and fascinating slide show cycling through photos randomly chronicling the growth of these young men from Cubs to Scouts, to Eagles. Years of camping, boating and snow adventures were depicted along with several scenes from “Tree-cycles” with which many in our community will be familiar. A veritable journal of wholesome and character building activities were shared.

Before beginning the individual honors, recognition was given to about a dozen past Eagle Scout recipients in the audience who stated their presentation years ranging from as early as 1964 to the most recent of 2019. Of particular note were several generations of Eagle Scouts, there to watch their sons or grandsons follow in their footsteps of this laudable achievement. It is also notable that since February of 2019, girls are now eligible to join scouting and several were present at this ceremony including Avery Peterson, the sister of recipient Nate Peterson. She was greeted with a rousing show of support as she stepped froward to lead the Scout Oath portion of the ceremony.

Eagle Scout requirements include earning 21 merit badges, serving in leadership positions and completing a substantial community service project. Master of ceremonies Tyler Peterson also shared that each of these five Eagle Scouts had served as Senior Patrol leaders at some point in their journey on the Eagle Trail. A position for which they must be elected by their troop peers.

Each Eagle Scout shared some words about their experience in scouting and honored two adults of their choosing who had helped them on their journey with ceremonial “Tent Stake” awards. Here is a sample from each of the Eagle Scouts addresses:

Jack Yanefski, Eagle Rank earned Nov. 11, 2023. Jack is graduating from O’Dea High School and will be attending Gonzaga University in the Fall. He shared that he had determined to be an Eagle Scout when he was just a Wolf Cub (a rank generally for 8-year-olds) and had witnessed a similar ceremony honoring Eagle Scouts.
Nate Peterson, Eagle Rank earned May 1, 2024. Nate is graduating from Mount Rainier High School and will be attending Central Washington University in the Fall to study Aviation. He credited “growth as a public speaker and developing confidence” as some of the things that he will carry with him from Scouting.
Braxton Games, Eagle Rank earned May 7, 2024. Braxton is graduating 8th grade from St. Francis of Assisi School and will be attending Kennedy Catholic High School in the Fall. He’s an impressive 14-year-old to be achieving this level, and smiled as he acknowledged that “the merit badge books could be long, and the backpacks could be heavy” but it was all worth it.
Samuel Scoville, Eagle Rank earned May 14, 2024. Samuel is graduating from Kennedy Catholic High School and will be attending the University of Notre Dame in the Fall to study Computer Science. A fourth generation Eagle Scout, said that to him this troop and scouting is “…a community that gathers together to remind us to give back to those who follow in our footsteps.”
Wesley Martin, Eagle Rank earned May 23, 2024. Wesley is graduating from Kennedy Catholic High School and will be attending Washington State University in the Fall to study Kinesiology. He noted that while participating in activities with other troops, he had come to realize that “this troop has more of support by all the parents, adults, friends and older Scouts, it’s truly amazing.”

Scouts additionally spent time to honor and acknowledge the support of Scoutmaster Frank Lyman, and Assistant Scoutmasters Doug Hans, Michael Scoville and Scott Games whose support was essential to their success.

We were honored to attend this inspiring event and invite you to join us in saluting these exceptional young men and their hard work.