Ambitious Scouts to be honored for community service

Two Fredonia Eagle Scouts and their projects will be recognized at an awards ceremony Sunday, Dec. 2.

Mason Thill and Matthew Baughman will be recognized from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Americanism Center in Waubeka.

In attendance will be leaders and Scouts with Troop 877, parents, mentors and friends. Ozaukee County Board Chairman Lee Schlenvogt and a representative of the Kettle Country District will make special presentations.

In addition, parents will be presented with special pins. Project mentors also will be recognized.

Both Thill and Baughman are seniors at Ozaukee High School. Mason lives in the Town of Fredonia, the son of Jennifer and Paul Thill. Matthew lives in the village. He is the son of Norman and Becky Baughman.

Thill’s project was rehabbing an old Nextel communications building into a warming shelter for ice skaters at Stoney Creek Park.

The $10,314 project was an ambitious one and he was often told so, Thill said.

“(The process) really showed me that anything can get done, because a lot of people told me this would be too difficult,” he said. “I’ve been told this is maybe the most ambitious project they’ve ever seen. It could have been split into multiple Eagle Scout projects.”

Major donors to Thill’s project included Port Washington State Bank, Eernisse Funeral Home and  Guy & O’Neill Inc. To raise the rest he held various fundraisers, got help from family and friends and went door to door in the community
The Village Board made the last donation of $464 to help him reach his goal.

The shelter building was moved by crane at no cost by Weyker Excavating.

The shelter includes a wall heater, laminate flooring, benches and a window.

Baughman’s project was a life jacket loaning station and information kiosk at Waubedonia Park near the boat launch on the Milwaukee River.

“I know a lot of the boaters on the river don’t have life jackets, and I thought this could be a nice opportunity for them to boat safely,” Baughman told Ozaukee Press earlier this year.

Baughman received $400 in donations from family members to pay for the materials, as well as a discount on supplies from Neuens Fredonia Lumber Co.

Both projects were reviewed and approved as Eagle Scout projects.

“Being an Eagle Scout is not easy and not every one can do it,” Baughman said. “The biggest thing for me is that it shows the leadership skills I learned.

“I’m ready to apply those skills in school and in my future career.”