Troop 243 Eagle Scout Court of Honor

Attaining the level of Eagle Scout is no easy task but rather an honor that requires a commitment and dedication to scouting, family, religion and community. Eagle Scout is the highest achievement or rank attainable in the Scouts BSA program of the Boy Scouts of America.

The six honorees from Troop 243 are Thomas Craven, Stephen Debany, Andrew Galligan, Zachary Karol, Henry Noonan and Timothy Voelker.

Honoring the boys on this night were many of our local leaders and dignitaries, presenting the boys with plaques, proclamations and certificates. Proud Eagle Coach Mr. Andrew Galligan emceed the night along with Scoutmaster Michael Egan, and they also had the honor of introducing each of the scouts and the honored guests. Deacon John 'Jack' McKenna of St. Joseph’s Church gave the invocation and the benediction. The Voice of the Eagle was delivered by Collin Plunkett.

Mayor Cosmo Veniziale and Nassau County Executive Laura Curran led the way with speeches focused on the hard work of the boys, followed by Don Clavin, Supervisor of Hempstead, Kate Murray, Hempstead Town Clerk and Tom Muscarella, 2nd District Council Member and Laura Schaeffer, Nassau County Legislature, 14th District, all speaking on various commitments and achievements of the boys. And representing the National Eagle Scout Association was David Doucette who gave the Eagle Charge, John Russo of the Knights of Columbus and Arthur Anderson of the GC/Mineola Rotary Club who all also addressed the boys and spoke of their dedication to the service of our community.

The Eagle Scout rank shows that a Scout embodies Scout BSA qualities of trustworthiness, loyalty, helpfulness, friendliness, courteousness, kindness, obedience, cheerfulness, thriftiness, bravery, cleanliness, and reverence. Eagle Scouts embody the Scout Law and that makes them a person of strong character. These traits will help them in everything they do, from being a parent, an employee or to a vital community leader.

Eagle Scouts value perseverance, discipline, motivation, leadership, accountability, and achievement. Since its inception in 1911, only four percent of Scouts have earned this rank. The Eagle Scout rank has been earned by over 2.5 million youth since 1911. Troop 243 has had approximately 102 Eagle Scouts since 1958, including these six young men.

Each of the boys undertook community projects to demonstrate their leadership and service qualities. The following are a short summary of each.

Thomas A Craven, III chose to restore the Ketcham Family Cemetery in Melville. His first step in gaining approval for the project was to meet with the Town of Huntington Historical Society, followed up with a meeting with the Suffolk County Parks Department to gain approval for a very thorough project plan. Over the course of five days and a lot of hard work, the outcome of the effort was creating an access trail, clearing the grounds of the cemetery, cleaning and repositioning headstones and constructing and planting flower beds along the entrance to the cemetery.

Stephen Patrick Debany chose to construct a pergola at the St. Martin de Porres School in Uniondale. Once the school approved of the project Stephen met with the head engineer and discussed a plan to build the pergola on the school’s patio next to the playground so that students in their large afterschool program had a place to sit during recess. The project took Stephen three weeks in total to complete from laying the ground work, digging post holes, mixing cement, cutting and designing the rafters, building the frame and finally assembling the roof. Because of the need for materials, Stephen also had a huge task of raising funding for the project, which ensured that the effort would be complete. Note: this project was completed in October of 2019 but due to COVID could not be celebrated until now.

Andrew Joseph Galligan, III designed, built and completed a Christmas Nativity Creche for Notre Dame Parish in NHP. The creche is large enough to contain statues representing all witnesses to the birth of Jesus Christ. Once he had secured the project for the creche, Andrew researched and ultimately created his own scale drawing, complete with measurements and dimensions. Meeting his goal of completing the project for Christmas 2020 was ensured by Andrew’s planning of two phases: the first to cut and prepare the components of the framework of the creche, and the second was to assemble the creche – first in the shop and then onsite at Notre Dame. Following the placement and stabilization of the build, the statues of the Nativity were situated in their relevant positions. The nativity can now be seen from NHP Road!

Zachary Karol built a retaining wall for St. Martin de Porres Marianist School on their field. The 50-foot wall was located at the corner of the field and provided a prevented measure against erosion and maintaining safety around the field. The goal of this project was not only to build a functional retaining wall but something that was also esthetically pleasing. First step for Zachary was gathering all of the materials and recruiting a master mason, his grandfather, to assist with the planning and build. Having the proper tools and expertise for the effort were crucial, and all that was left was to lead a group of ‘junior’ masons through the build. The wall was completed quickly and pleasing to the eye, leaving St. Martin de Porres Marianist School very happy with the results.

Henry Christopher Noonan built four benches for the entrance of the Mary Brennan Inn Soup Kitchen in Hempstead where he had volunteered during a previous summer. The project involved planning, designing and gathering the necessary materials for the benches. Because of his extensive planning and prep work, Henry was able to build the benches in just a little more than six hours in his driveway. The building of the benches took place in the Fall of 2020 and delivered to a very receptive INN just before Christmas.

Timothy Voelker led an initiative to benefit the community by placing a bench at the Osbourne Road greenspace in Garden City. It was placed in honor of his fellow Boy Scouts of Troop 243 in late 2020. Timothy not only faced the typical design and build tasks, but also the navigation of the some ‘red tape’ to get his project approved. Never an issue that would prevent the build, but there were many hurdles and layers of bureaucracy that Timothy needed to ensure were met in order to lace the bench on public property. In December of 2020, the bench was placed at the ‘triangle’, giving both walkers and children a place to rest.

Congratulations to the six new members of the Eagle Scout Court of Honor!