On Sunday afternoon, Nathan Woods was recognized during a ceremony at the North Valley Community Center. A member of Troop 41, Nathan is Columbia Falls’ newest Eagle Scout and the 28th Eagle Scout from Troop 41 since 1992.
To achieve the Eagle rank, Scouts must progress through seven ranks, each requiring community service, a mastery of outdoor skills (knots, first aid, fire starting, survival, orienteering, etc), and demonstrated leadership of other Scouts for periods as long as six months. The Eagle Scout must also successfully complete 21 merit badges, 9 of which are from a required list. The remaining 12 badges are chosen by the Scout from a list of more than 130 badges covering areas of interest from computers to metalworking.
Finally, each Eagle candidate must also design, organize, manage and complete a community service project, which typically requires from 100 to 400 manhours of volunteer labor. Nathan’s Eagle project included several wood projects at the Columbia Falls Food Bank, including the construction of the green, wooden boxes you see at Western Building, Smith’s and Super One. His project also included construction and installation of the new sign in front of the Food Bank’s building on Railroad Street.
Famous Eagle Scouts include Neil Armstrong and 26 other astronauts, President Gerald Ford, and Steven Spielberg.