Five recent Goretti grads share same honor: Eagle

September 05, 2007

Five of this year's 36 graduates at St. Maria Goretti high school in Hagerstown have an extraordinary achievement in common.

They each have earned Boy Scouting's highest rank, Eagle Scout.

Nationally, just 2 percent of Scouts ever attain this honor, said Barbara Weaver, spokeswoman for the local Mason-Dixon Council for Boy Scouting. More than 800,000 boys are in the Scouting program nationwide, she said.

The Mason-Dixon Council covers Washington County in Maryland as well as Franklin and Fulton counties in Pennsylvania.

It has also done well, compared to the national rate, Weaver said.

In all, 53 of its 741 Scouts earned the Eagle rank in 2006, she said. That's 7.1 percent.

And that wasn't unusual. In 2005, she said, 51 of its 750 Scouts attained the Eagle rank. That's 6.8 percent.

At Goretti, the new Eagle Scouts include:

· Matthew Brockway, of Troop 4, which is sponsored by John Wesley United Methodist Church. He is a member of the Order of the Arrow and earned his Eagle on Jan. 24, 2006. He is the son of Mike and Karen Brockway;

· Alex Grove, of Troop 8, which is sponsored by St. Ann Catholic Church. He earned his Eagle on Sept. 21, 2005, and is currently assisting the troop as assistant scoutmaster and has gone on a two- week backpacking trip to Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico. He is the son of Douglas and Mary Grove;

· Michael Crumrine, of Troop 4, which is sponsored by John Wesley United Methodist Church. He earned his Eagle on Dec. 13, 2005, and is a member of the Order of the Arrow. He is the son of Gil and Mary Crumrine;

· Paul Winslow, of Troop 8. He earned his Eagle on July 19, 2006. He has attended two backpacking trips to Philmont. He is the son of Dr. Mike and Bernadette Winslow; and

· Thomas Oder, of Troop 8. He earned his Eagle on July 19, 2006. He is a member of the Order of the Arrow and has gone on a two-week backpacking trip to Philmont. He is the son of Stephen and Monica Oder.

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