Seven Winter Park troopers become Eagle Scouts

More than 100 million boys have gone through the Boy Scouts of America program; only about 2 million have achieved the rank of Eagle Scout.

In 2010, five percent of Boy Scouts made it to Eagle. Winter Park’s Boy Scout Troop 62 saw seven of its boys reach Eagle Scout over the past year, and they celebrated that achievement with a ceremony for all of them recently.

To achieve Eagle Scout, in addition to spending about 10 years going up through the ranks, a boy scout must do a project that benefits the community. First they create an almost business plan-like strategy, get approval from their Boy Scout leaders and the organization they plan to help, and then lead fellow scouts in its completion, taking about six months and 50-100 hours of work. Troop 62’s Scouts had projects ranging from building corrals for the Apopka TLC Horse Rescue by Stephen Timmes, to Brendan Dufresne’s construction of an outdoor simple machine exhibit teaching tool for Lakemont Elementary, to building a new planting box at the Morningstar School by Joey Broschart.

Not only are they doing a lot to help the community now, but Scout dad John McCabe also believes they are going to contribute to the future.

“They’re going to go out there and they’re going to do great things in the world,” he said.

Peyton Bailey, a junior at Lake Highland Preparatory School, has been in the Boy Scout program since he was about 6 years old. He’s a third-generation Eagle Scout. When he isn’t running track, participating in the Best Buddies program, or spending time with his church on mission trips, he works as a leader in his troop. He’s served as troop scribe, patrol leader and assistant senior patrol leader. Bailey has learned much about being a leader from scouting, and said it’s important to connect and form relationships with the people who look to you.

“Being a leader is not about being loud,” he said.

His Eagle project was a swing and fort structure built at the Coalition for the Homeless. As soon as he was finished, he was proud to see children run out to play on it, while their parents watched.

“Immediately I saw an impact,” Bailey said.

Matthew Domescek, a junior in the Winter Park High School International Baccalaureate program, is a second-generation Eagle Scout and has earned the Triple Crown Award for attending all three high-adventure camps. He said he learned the most from the Philmont Scout Ranch, where he and Bailey hiked and definitely used their survival skills during campouts, especially when their site was hit by rain and hail during a lightning storm. This was just one of many experiences he said he never would’ve had without being a Scout.

“It’s given me a lot of opportunities I wouldn’t have had otherwise,” he said.

Domescek’s Eagle project was a renovation of Winter Park’s Christian Service Center food pantry. He did a build-out and painted the pantry, and as a side project collected food for the pantry and its users. Domescek said his side project was more successful than he could’ve imagined. He collected four tons of food for the organization, which covered the entire floor of the pantry and its office. The food lasted only two months, which he said showed just how much of an impact his project made.

“They were in so much need,” Domescek said.

Turner McCabe, a senior at WPHS, said he has learned how to be a leader through scouting. He was chosen by his fellow scouts as crew leader for his trip to Philmont Scout Ranch this summer, possibly because of his extensive camping experience — he’s spent more than 97 nights sleeping in the wilderness — and has also served as assistant patrol leader for his troop. He said his philosophy of becoming a great leader fits well with the opportunities he gets being a scout.

“The best way to learn how to be a leader is to go out and do it,” McCabe said.

His Eagle project involved installing 87 garden posts at Glenridge Middle School to keep the grass and landscape protected from students trying to cut through. He loves walking by his project each Monday and seeing that it’s working for the school.

Henry McCabe, a junior in the WPHS International Baccalaureate program, joined the Boy Scout program with his brother, Turner, with the encouragement of his dad, a former Scout. For him, leading wasn’t a natural talent. It took work, and becoming an Eagle Scout pushed him to become a great one.

“You have to learn through the experience … it’s trial and error,” McCabe said.

His Eagle project was inspired by his love of art, and he led a renovation of Winter Park Presbyterian Church’s arts and crafts house.

McCabe said being a Scout is something he will keep with him far into the future, and he hopes to one day help mentor Scouts as an adult.

“I want to see myself step up like that in the future,” he said.