Simsbury Troop 175

Gabe's Eagle Project

For the last couple of months, I have been working on my Eagle project. I chose to work with Henry James Memorial School and Simsbury Public Schools. They are a valuable resource in our town. In the courtyard at Henry James, there is an oak tree, whose roots used to stick up out of the rough asphalt. With the help of Mr. Twitchelll, grounds manager for Simsbury Public Schools, and Mrs. Peters, vice-principal at Henry James we decided that the most helpful project would be to build a sitting wall around the tree and put a miniature garden in the center.

The price for the project was around $1500.00, so initially we were worried that we wouldn’t be able to raise the money needed for the project, and that we would have to ask the Henry James PTC to chip in. But, with the help of an extremely productive car wash, and funds brought in by friend's family members, troop members and a few Simsbury businesses we actually exceeded the goal. This extra money will hopefully go to other Eagle Scout projects.

We also had to get the project approved by the Simsbury BOE. Finally, in late September we started the groundwork for the project, and in amongst rainy weekends and scout trips we finished the project on October 30, 2009. We used Techo Blocks to build the wall and glued them together with a strong adhesive. This wall will be useful as a beautification, retaining wall, and a place for people to sit and eat lunch or wait for the bus.

Once again, thanks to all the scouts and scout families who helped raise money or put in hours at the car wash or on the project. Also, thanks to the adult leadership for guidance in the process.

Five New Eagle Scouts for Troop 175

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At a special Court of Honor held in St. Mary’s Church, five scouts from Simsbury Troop 175 were awarded the rank of Eagle Scout, the Boy Scout’s highest honor. The scouts receiving the honor were Lee Adamowicz, Cortlandt Carter, Dan Kalamarides, Grant Osbourne and Michael Vallen. Over 200 people attended the ceremony that included representatives from the Town of Simsbury and the State of Connecticut.

"These guys represent the best of Scouting and have collectively climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, explored deep in the Amazon jungle, explored the deserts of Philmont, the National Boy Scout Ranch and have set a sterling example for the younger boys in the Troop," said Scoutmaster Brad Mead.

Special thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Duff for their guidance to each of the Eagle scouts.

Additional photos are available in the Troop 175 Photo Library

Eagle Scout Lee Adamowicz

 Lee Adamowicz was born on August 7, 1991 in Barrington, Rhode
Island. For the first two years of his life he lived in Barrington right
by the ocean. He then moved to Alpharetta, Georgia where he spent
another two years until his family finally settled down in Simsbury,
Connecticut. He has spent his entire school career in the Simsbury
public school system, starting at Central Elementary, to Henry James
for middle school, and finally reaching Simsbury High School, where
he is currently finishing his junior year.

Lee began his scouting career as a Bobcat in Saint Mary’s Pack 175
in 1999, where his mother was the den leader of Den 12. After
achieving his Arrow of Light award in the 5th grade, Lee crossed
over to Boy Scout Troop 175, which was then led by Scoutmaster
Rich Cady.

Lee’s favorite memories from scouting consist of the deep freeze
trips, and the challenge of building his own shelters, as well as
Summer Camp Mattituck 2008 and the Bear Grylls skit. He has
enjoyed all the Immortals trips and the physical and mental tests that
are presented throughout the weekend.

For his Eagle Scout project, Lee chose to help the American School
for the Deaf. ASD owns Camp Isola Bella in Salisbury and Lee
undertook several improvements to the camp. Lee, with the help of
many scouts from Troop 175, cleared hiking trails as well as built and
placed four birdhouses, four benches, and a picnic table. These
improvements will lead to improved education for the children
attending the camp as well as improved safety while at camp.

Other interests of Lee’s besides Boy Scouts include being a cadet in
the Simsbury Volunteer Fire Company for 2 ½ years, operating a
successful lawn/snow blowing business for six years, and rowing on
the Varsity Crew team at Simsbury High School. In his free time Lee
enjoys mountain biking, skiing, and running. Lee is looking forward
to attending National Outdoor Leadership School this summer for a
four-week course on mountaineering in the Waddington Mountain
Range in British Columbia.

Eagle Scout Cort Carter

Cortlandt Carter, 18, has been a member of Boy Scout Troop 175
since moving to Simsbury, CT, in 2001, and serves currently as a
Junior Assistant Scoutmaster. His record of leadership includes
serving as Senior Patrol Leader from June 2007 – June 2008, being
elected by his peers as the Crew Chief for the Philmont Scout Ranch
Expedition in July 2007, and being a founding member of the Immortals
High Adventure Group.

An avid traveler, Cort was among the seven scouts from Troop 175
who participated in a 16-day expedition to the Amazon jungle of
Peru during the summer of 2008. In addition to jungle camping, the
group assisted a noted primatologist in tracking and counting various
primate species. He has also traveled extensively through Greece,
Italy, Great Britain and Scotland.

His community service activities in addition to scouting include
serving as an assistant coach for boys and girls basketball at St. Mary’s
School. His sports interests in addition to basketball include football
and baseball. A graduating senior at Northwest Catholic High School,
Cort intends to attend Franklin Pierce University in the Fall, where he
plans to study business and psychology.

Cortlandt recently completed a community service project meant to
promote recycling. Cort spearheaded an effort that included 44
fellow scouts and parents to raise funds and construct eight recycling
containers for the town of Simsbury. Funds were raised through a
car wash held at St. Mary’s School in mid-March, and construction
and placement of the recycling containers was completed on April
19. Instrumental in completing the project was Troop 175 Assistant
Scoutmaster Peter Adamowicz. Upon completion, Cort appeared
before the Simsbury Board of Selectmen as well as the town’s Culture,
Parks and Recreation Commission, to explain the project and how it
fits with recent environmental efforts launched in Simsbury.

I would like to thank Mr. Adamowicz for all of his help and patience.
My project could not have gotten done without his help. Thank you
to Mr. Toner for his enthusiasm and for helping this project along as
quickly as he could. To the Duffs for supporting me especially with
the write-up and always making sure I kept moving – never at a stand
still. Thanks to all of the scouts and scoutmasters who helped get the
work done, I couldn’t have done it without their help. To my mom
who gave me this great idea, and a thank you to my dad who always
made sure I was doing the right thing.

Eagle Scout Dan Kalamarides

Dan Kalamarides began Cub Scouts as a Tiger Cub in Pack 17 of
Wilton, CT. He then moved to Simsbury and was a part of Pack 174
where he enjoyed the Pine Wood Derbies. He earned the Arrow of
Light Award and crossed over to Troop 175 in 5th grade.
Dan’s favorite memories of scouts include the annual skiing and
Onion Mountain trips, along with many summers at Camp
Mattatuck. He enjoyed participating in (and winning) the first
Adventure race with teammates Ryan Mead and Max Seifert. His
most memorable night camping came at Gettysburg, where he and
other scouts spent a terrifying night with Grant Osborne. The
epitome of Dan’s scouting career was a two-week long backpacking
trip in Philmont Scout Ranch, in which he remembers participating in
a tomahawk-throwing contest, telling jokes and “chilling” in a sweat
lodge.

After being Patrol Leader of FuelX8 and the Oxymoron’s, with their
infamous patrol flags, Dan was elected Senior Patrol Leader as a
freshman in High School. He emerged as a leader after a large
graduating class and has since been an Instructor and a member of
the Quality Control team.

Dan’s Eagle Project combined some of the most important aspects
of his life: scouting, religion and the community. He organized and
led a collection of supplies for five Burundi refugee families that
moved to Hartford. With the help of the Burundi Fellowship and
Catholic Charities, he was able to provide the families with a window
for success in their futures in America. Dan decided on this project
because he wanted to help reconstruct people’s lives rather than the
classic bridge construction project.

Dan is currently a junior at Simsbury High School, where he is a
member of the varsity Cross Country and Track teams. He has
represented the school in three state meets and hopes to continue
with his success in running. He is a member of the National Honors
Society and Simsbury Scholars, maintaining a GPA over 4.0. Dan
would like to thank his family, scoutmasters, fellow scouts and
especially the Duff family for helping him become an Eagle Scout.

Eagle Scout Grant Osborne

Grant began scouting in third grade with Pack 276 as a Cub Scout.
He then earned his Arrow of Light (with plenty of time to spare) and
crossed over to Troop 175 in fifth grade. His best memories of Cub
Scouts are the Pinewood Derby races, which are best won with the
simplest design, graphite, and melted fish weights.

Grant has many memorable experiences with Troop 175. One of his
favorite memories is from when he first joined the troop, and went
on the trips to Treasure Valley. He remembers goofing around,
learning from the older scouts, and just having a good time. This
became a standard for all the trips that he loved best, which include
Block Island and the Bromley ski trip. These trips were the best
because you could be independent and learn from your mistakes,
such as not slamming on the front brakes at high speeds. The best
trip by far that he ever went on was to Philmont Scout Ranch in New
Mexico, with its picture-perfect views, diverse terrain, and many
laughable moments. Grant hopes to carry out his own backpacking
trip one day, and continue enjoying the outdoors. Grant’s leadership
was demonstrated through the positions of patrol leader, assistant
senior patrol leader, and troop librarian. Of these, he enjoyed being
patrol leader best, because the patrol was more hands-on, and
involved more teaching.

Grant’s Eagle project was the construction of a secure enclosure for
the church of St. Catherine. As a parishioner, he was aware of the
church’s need for such a facility, and with the help of Father Michael,
Mr. Rice and his friends, the enclosure was built. The project was a
natural choice because of his hobby of working with his hands and
creating/building. The enclosure was built complete with dual
swinging doors and a keypad lock, and yielded 160 sq. feet of storage
space.

During his busy scouting career, Grant was also busy with work and
athletics at school. Grant juggled his part-time job at Mario’s with his
after school sports: crew and wrestling, both of which he excelled at
and participated in at a varsity level. After high school Grant began
an apprenticeship with a electrical contracting company, and is
currently working and aspiring towards becoming a licensed
electrician. Grant is very grateful towards his friends, scout leaders,
and family who helped him through his very busy and hectic senior
year and made acquiring Eagle possible.

Eagle Scout Mike Vallen

Michael Vallen joined scouts in the first grade as a Tiger Cub. He was
a member of Pack 2 in Downingtown, Pennsylvania. He earned the
Arrow of Light and all twenty pins for Webelos. As a 5th grader,
Michael crossed over to Troop 2. That’s where Michael’s love of
scouting really began. Troop 2 took exciting trips including rock
climbing, winter camping at Valley Forge, white water rafting on the
Leigh River and ski trips. Summer camp was outstanding. Michael
went to camp every summer and earned many merit badges as a
young scout. Michael also had the opportunity to sail on the
Chesapeake Bay for a week at High Adventure Sailing. Michael was
inducted into the Order of the Arrow in 7th grade. Before moving to
Avon, CT, Michael had earned the rank of Life Scout.

Michael thought that Troop 2 was the best Boy Scouting Troop in the
US. In 2006 Michael’s family moved to Avon, CT. By the luck of a
faulty website, Michael decided to join Troop 175 in Simsbury, CT.
After a talk with Mr. Mead, he decided that Troop 175 was the right
troop for him. Michael was immediately accepted by the boys and the
adult leadership. He participated in most trips and was given the
opportunity to explore what New England has to offer. His favorite
trips were to Tuckerman’s Ravine, Zealand Hut, Stratton, Slide
Mountain, Smugglers Notch and the annual deep freeze. His biggest
accomplishment was to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro at the age of 14. After
three years as a member of Troop 175, Michael knows that he is now
in the best troop in the US.

Michael’s Eagle Scout Project was to rebuild the Avon Crew trailer.
After many years of abuse the trailer was falling apart. Michael is a
member of the Avon Crew. Michael felt that this would be a good
project not only for an Eagle Scout but it also would help his team.
Avon is a new team and this refurbished trailer helped build team
spirit. With the help of the Scouts of Troop 175, Avon’s Crew team
now looks like a professional team. Michael would like to thank Mr.
and Mrs. Duff, his crew coach Soo Passmoor, Mr. Mando, the scouts
of Troop 175, and his crew team for all their help and support during
this Eagle Scout Project.

Michael is currently a Junior at Avon High School. He is the stroke
of the Varsity 1 boat for his crew team, Captain of his Cross Country
team and a member of the swim team. He is a cadet in the Avon
Volunteer Fire Department. As a Scout he is Chief of the Immortals.
Michael would like to thank his family and friends for helping him
achieve the rank of Eagle Scout.

Eagle Scout Profile: Ryan Mead

BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA
TROOP 175
NATIONAL EAGLE COURT OF HONOR
May 4, 2008

Eagle Scout Ryan Mead

Ryan Mead joined scouting in the first grade as a Tiger Cub. He began his experience in Pack 175, receiving his Arrow of Light award at the age of 10. Ryan crossed over into Troop 175 with his brother, Jeffrey, when both were in fifth grade. His best memory of Cub Scouts was carving a 20 foot totem pole with his den..

Ryan has countless memories of his years in Troop 175. He remembers the first father/son campout with the endless games of "Risk" and the snowball fights on the frozen lake. He remembers summer camp at Mattatuck where the scouts enjoyed archery, rifle shooting, campfires, and their traditional rivalry with Troop 76. Ryan will always hold onto memories of the subzero Deep Freeze Survival campout and the town-wide adventure race.

Ryan demonstrated scouting's maturity and direction through various leadership positions within the troop.He first served as Patrol Leader of the Silly Rabbit Patrol with a memorable 2nd place finish at Mattatuck's "Campwide Game." He continued as Troop Historian the following year accounting the important trip details and moments for future reference and reflection. Recently, he has served as a troop Instructor, aiding the newer scouts in basic scouting skills and facilitating their advancement to the rank of Scout.

Ryan's Eagle Scout Project gave back to the always supportive St. Mary's Parish. With the help of countless fellow scouts, Ryan constructed a new Creche for the church's Christmas nativity scene. The project was funded by a very successful and entertaining car wash which coincided nicely with the troop's work at the annual car show. The building of the creche went smoothly, and the electrical bulbs in its corners highlight Jesus in the center.

Ryan is currently a high school senior at Northwest Catholic. He plays tennis for his school and soccer for the town of Simsbury. Ryan wants to express his gratitude to all of his Scoutmasters, his father, his brother, and his supportive friends and family for helping him achieve the rank of Eagle.

Eagle Scout Profile: Jeff Mead

BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA
TROOP 175
NATIONAL EAGLE COURT OF HONOR
May 4, 2008

Eagle Scout Jeff Mead

Jeffrey Mead started Scouting in the first grade as a Tiger Cub. He was in Troop 174 and earned his Arrow of Light award at the age of 10. He crossed over to Troop 175 with his brother in the fifth grade. His fondest memory of Cub Scouts was racing in the Pinewood Derby.

Jeff has many favorite memories of his years in Troop 175. He remembers his first trip, the father/son campout, and sledding down the path to the lake on the bunk mattresses. He remembers the trips to Tuckerman's Ravine and skiing in the bowl. Jeff greatly enjoyed his 3 summers at Camp Mattatuck, where he got to earn his first merit badges. He will also never forget his favorite trips: trekking up Slide Mountain and hiking up Mount Kilimanjaro this past summer.

Jeff has also held several leadership positions within the troop. Early on, he was appointed Patrol Leader of one of the two New Scout Patrols. He continued as Patrol Leader the following year when these two patrols merged. Recently, he has also served as a troop Instructor, where he aids the newer scouts in basic scouting skills and requirements. Jeff was voted into The Immortals this past fall and holds up The Immortal goal: "To teach, to learn, to serve, and to lead."

Jeff's Eagle Scout Project involved cleaning up the back entrance to St. Mary*s School and Church. He was able to clean up the area and install a 150* split-rail fence that marked the back entrance. None of this would have been possible without the overwhelming support of the community and the manpower provided by his fellow scouts. He is grateful that he could give back to the community and church that have helped him become who he is today.

Jeff is currently a high school senior at Choate Rosemary Hall. In addition to being a Prefect in his dorm, he rows on the Crew team in the fall and spring, and was captain of the Wrestling team in the winter. Jeff would like to thank all of the Scoutmasters as well as his father and brother for helping him achieve the rank of Eagle.

Eagle Scout Profile: Joseph Worthen

BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA
TROOP 175
NATIONAL EAGLE COURT OF HONOR
May 4, 2008

Eagle Scout Joseph Worthen

Joe began his scouting experience in 4th grade as a Cub Scout in Troop 276 and earned his Arrow of Light award in 1999.  He crossed over into Boy Scouts when he joined troop 175 in 2000.  Joe's most fond memory of Cub Scouts is climbing to the top of Black Rock State Park.

Joe has many fond memories of Troop 175.  Summer camp at Camp Mattatuck was always memorable, and he will especially remember the year the infirmary was packed with boys suffering from "Simsbola".  Joe also enjoyed the yearly ski trips to Bromley, with the posh accommodations, sleeping on the gym floor.  He'll always remember the dad's, snoring in unison, throughout the night.  Joe enjoyed many other trips, an awesome day skiing Tuckerman's Ravine, biking throughout Block Island, and climbing Mt. Washington.  There were two trips, however, that were the most memorable.  When Joe was in 9th grade, he took part in a 50-mile canoe trip camping and canoeing down the Delaware River.  Although it rained everyday, and there were times that lightning was hitting the water as they paddled, it was one of the best times he's ever had.  The summer before his senior year, Joe went to the Philmont Scout Ranch with the troop.  This was the highlight of his scouting career.  Joe remembers the incredible scenery, eating way too much trail mix, almost stepping on a rattle snake, sitting, with the *brothers" around the campfire at night, the morning they woke up in a pasture to find themselves surrounded by a herd of cattle, and laughing, a lot.

Joe held various leadership positions in the Troop.  His first leadership position was Troop Guide.  Joe was also a Patrol Leader for one year.  Although he learned many leadership skills as a Patrol leader, Joe went back to being a Troop Guide, as he found that this was a position he excelled at.  Through Scouts, Joe discovered he had an aptitude for teaching, guiding, and encouraging, which he carried over into his job throughout high school, working at Ski Sundown as an alpine ski instructor.

Joe's Eagle project involved encouraging the migration of Bluebirds to the area surrounding the Roaring Brook Nature Center in Canton, CT. This seemed like a natural choice for a project, as an appreciation for nature had always been instilled in him by his mom and building by his dad.  With guidance from Mr. Kaplan, Joe mapped out a plan in which two new habitats were designed to increase bluebird activity at and around the Nature Center.  As a part of this plan, Joe researched, organized and supervised the building of 8 new bluebird houses, complete with pest guards, mounted on poles.   These houses were then placed at the Nature Center in the designated areas.   Joe would like to especially thank Mr. Kaplan, the members of the troop, and his close friends, as their assistance and support throughout, helped to bring his project to fruition.

Joe completed his project at the end of his senior year in high school, where Joe was active in athletics. Many of Joe’s fondest high school memories were as a member of the Cross Country Running Team and the Track Team.   In the fall, Joe began his college career at Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worcester, MA, where he is majoring in Mechanical Engineering with a concentration in Biomedical Engineering.

Eagle Scout Profile: Scott Miller

BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA
TROOP 175
NATIONAL EAGLE COURT OF HONOR
May 4, 2008

Scott Howard Miller

Scott joined scouting as a Bear Cub of pack 76 in the third grade.  He earned the Arrow of Light Award before crossing over into Troop 175 in fifth grade with many of his friends in his den.  What he remembers most out of cub scouts was going to Camp Tadma for two summers and winning second place in the Pinewood Derby as a Bear Scout.

Upon joining Troop 175 Scott participated in many exciting trips with his fellow scouts.  Some trips that Scott participated in annually were skiing up at Bromley, Klondike derbies, Block Island biking, Camp Mattatuck, and Onion Mountain.   Some other trips that Scott enjoyed were to New York City, Boston, Delaware Water Gap, and Zealand Hut.  But, his favorite trip had to be when he traveled to Tanzania, Africa to climb Mount Kilimanjaro.  Afterwards, he enjoyed an amazing and relaxing safari with his friends and father.

As part of the troop, Scott held a few leadership positions throughout his scouting career.  He started out small as an assistant patrol leader, and then he moved up to scribe which he held for four years.  Last year he was elected to the position of Assistant Senior Patrol Leader.  In addition, he joined the Immortals group as one of its founding members.

Scott*s Eagle Project was to create an orienteering course in Onion Mountain Park.  To fundraise for the project he placed a plate on each post that was dedicated by the person or family that donated.  Scott felt that this project could not only be used by the scouts on their frequent campouts to Onion Mountain, but also by the community.  Scott believes that this definitely helps improve the park*s quality because it gives the public a different way to enjoy the scenery.  Scott would like to thank his entire family, the Duffs, and the scouts that helped him with his project.

Currently, Scott is a senior at Simsbury High School.  He participates in many school sports including cross country, cross country skiing, and volleyball.  In academics, Scott takes many Advanced Placement courses, is on the Honor Roll, and is a member of the National Honor Society.  Also, Scott has enjoyed participating on the Math League team and in the Dodgeball League.  In the upcoming fall, Scott plans to attend an engineering college.  Scott is very thankful for all the support he has been given over the many years he has been in Boy Scouts from his family, friends, Scoutmasters, and fellow Boy Scouts.