Freeholders Honor Outstanding Eagle Scouts

Published on April 30, 2018

The Morris County Board of Freeholders this week honored six Eagle Scouts from Denville, Hanover, Rockaway Township and Washington Township for a series of ambitious scout projects that helped them attain Boy Scouting's highest honor.

Eagle Scout honorees posing with their certificates. Also pictured are Freeholders Cabana, Darling, DeFillippo, Smith and Mastrangelo.(JPG, 323KB)

Projects done by the Eagle Scouts, who represented four Scout troops in the county, included building stone benches at a historic site, creating a new walking trail, and developing an outdoor worship area, among others.

The projects required hundreds of hours of volunteer efforts by the scouts and their volunteer teams.

It is a privilege for the Board of Freeholders to celebrate the positive efforts of these six young men who undertook ambitious projects that have made positive impacts on their respective communities,'' said Freeholder Director Doug Cabana. They, obviously, have set an example for all of us, and are obviously future leaders of Morris County, he added.

The freeholders, at their April 25 meeting in Morristown, awarded county certificates of achievement to:

  • Seth Hanchett, Troop 236, Schooley's Mountain
  • Dylan Nielsen, Troop 236, Schooley's Mountain
  • Kenneth Minenna, Troop 160, Rockaway Township
  • Joshua Rand, Troop 17, Denville
  • Christopher Willis, Troop 17, Denville
  • Michael Zarras, Troop 155, Hanover Township

Take a look at the work done by these scouts.

Each of the scouts who received county certificates has impressive personal resumes, featuring outstanding family, school, scouting, and personal achievements.

  • Seth Hanchett is a senior at West Morris Central High School, where his coursework focuses on the Science-Technology-Engineering-Math curriculum. He participates in various sports and holds a black belt in karate. For his Eagle Scout project, Seth created a new one-mile multi-use trail that extends a section of Patriots Path. The work included removing brush and vegetation, building and installing a footbridge over a stream, blazing a trail and creating and installing hand-made teak directional signs at trailheads.
  • Dylan Nielsen is a 2017 graduate of West Morris Central High School and currently attends Montgomery Academy in Bernardsville. Dylan has autism and helps his peers at the school who have more severe disabilities. For his Eagle Scout project, Dylan built four gabion benches from existing stone from the ruins of the circa 1774 Union Church historic site in Long Valley.
  • Joshua Rand is a senior at Morris Knolls High School in Denville. He joined the scouts as a Tiger Scout, completed all levels of Cub Scouting, and moved onto Boy Scouts with a goal of one day becoming an Eagle Scout. For his Eagle Scout project, Joshua led a project to restore a rock wall at the rectory of his church €“ Denville Community Church €“ and beautified the garden above the rectory.
  • Christopher Willis is a senior at Morris Knolls High School in Denville where he earned the Summa Award in all four years of high school for attaining a GPA of 90 or above. For his Eagle Scout project, he coordinated the efforts of 31 volunteers to install three planters to beautify Denville's Cook Pond, which required collaborating with the Denville Recreation Department, acquiring and preparing supplies and assembling and installing the planters.
  • Kenneth Minenna is a senior at Morris Knolls High School in Denville, where he participated in marching band and track. He was chosen for the Morris County School of Technology's Engineering, Design, and Advanced Manufacturing curriculum. His Eagle Scout project was the creation of an outdoor worship area at the Rockaway United Methodist Church. Joined by 250 volunteers, Kenneth led the effort to clear the brush, prepare the land, and then build the worship site.
  • Michael Zarras is a senior at Whippany Park High School in Hanover Township where he participated in soccer, mock trial team and is a member of the National Honor Society. For his Eagle Scout project, Michael created a Special Olympics event for students at the Allegro School, which serves children with autism. Working with fellow Scouts and Allegro School students, Michael created an event filled with games and an obstacle course. The day included food, t-shirts and prizes for the contestants.

Congratulations to each of these young men!

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