Lemont Scout Seeks Help for Project to Enhance LHS Band Program

Lemont High School Senior Nate Bielanski is uniting his passions for both music and scouting by designing his Eagle Scout project to enhance efficiency for LHS’s competitive marching band program. As a member of Lemont Scout Troop 49, Bielanski must complete the project to earn the rank of Eagle, the highest achievement attainable within the scouting program.

Bielanski created the plans for his Eagle Scout project to meet a need that he encountered firsthand as a four-year member of the band. He is an accomplished Trombone and Baritone player and was selected this year by the Illinois Music Education Association (ILMEA) as an All-State Musician. Bielanski has been a Boy Scout since 7th grade. He points to similarities between the band and Scouts: “You know you are helping out a good cause and that makes you feel good, and you’re doing it with people you enjoy being around.”

When deciding what his Eagle Scout project would be, he approached the LHS band directors to ask how he could help the band and they reminded him of an issue that slows the band down on competition days – the way that hats are transported to marching competitions.

“The problem is each band member must grab their own hatbox and take it with them on the bus. Hats get mixed up or left behind and have to be stored under our seats on the bus, so there’s no room for much else,” Bielanski says, adding, “It slows us down when we are trying to get to competitions on time and expecting everyone to be ready and have what they need.”

For those reasons, Bielanski’s Eagle Scout project is to design and build four rolling storage containers to house the band’s 150 hatboxes, making it easy to roll all of the hats at once out of storage onto the equipment trucks, and giving students additional room on the bus. The rolling carts will also accommodate the boxes for plumes, the feathers that adorn the tops of the hats, which are also transported separately and at risk of being left behind. Bielanski designed the specialized containers himself, as an “opening bookshelf.”

After he identified his project, his next step was to create his plans and turn them in to his scout leaders for approval, including drawings, measurements, and projected costs. Now that the project has been approved, Bielanski is seeking assistance to cover the cost of materials and has set up a GoFundMe page where those who would like to support him can make a donation.

Once he has raised enough funds Bielanski says he will purchase the materials and build one of the rolling storage containers by himself. Then he will lead the younger scouts in his troop in creating the other three containers. This will include supervising them in measuring, cutting, assembling, and painting the finished containers according to the band directors’ specifications.

“Eagle Scout projects are meant to demonstrate leadership ability and serve a need in the community,” Bielanski says. “My project will benefit band students, the band directors, and Lemont High School by making the process of traveling to competitions more efficient and fool-proof, thereby helping Lemont High School put its best foot forward via the band program.”

Bielanski will attend Purdue University in the fall to major in Engineering. To donate to his Eagle Scout project, visit his GoFundMe page at the following link: https://gofund.me/c79d666e