NESA Folder 2017

PATHWAY TO ADVENTURE COUNCIL NATIONAL EAGLE SCOUT ASSOCIATION

What is the National Eagle Scout Association (NESA)?

NESA PTAC is a group of men that achieved the rank of Eagle Scout as youth who now seek to reconnect with fellow local Eagle Scouts to promote camaraderie and networking among their members while also supporting Scouts and Scouting through NESA sponsored events, philanthropic endeavors, as well as volunteering and mentoring opportunities in Northeast Illinois/Northwest Indiana.

Networking

• Recognizing the value this fraternity of men who have all reached the achievement of Eagle Scout, we share a common value for excellence and live by a high standard of integrity that was forged in our Scouting experience.

• Leverage technology to connect and build relationships using voluntary on-line databases (i.e. NESA, LinkedIn) of professional backgrounds that can be accessed for referrals, advice and services.

• Connect at NESA events and activities.

Activities

• Host NESA events such as recognition dinners, business breakfast meetings and social events.

• Support existing Council activities to raise awareness for NESA. • Provide opportunities for interaction with NESA members and the Scouting community at large.

Mentoring

• Motivate Star and Life Scouts to persevere to Eagle, by demonstrating the unique benefits of joining this elite (but not elitist) group of Scouts.

• Through high school and college, provide opportunities for Eagle Scouts to learn firsthand about career options they are considering through other Eagles in those professions.

• Help Eagles land their first job and then engage with the NESA chapter to continue the cycle of service.

MEET THE CHAIRMAN It is with great excitement I have this opportunity to introduce myself. Living in the Chicagoland area over the last four years has been some of my most rewarding in my 25 years of Scouting. As I have moved from Michigan to Wisconsin, and now to Illinois, being an Eagle Scout, Vigil Honor member in the Order of the Arrow, and past camp staff member, scouting has always been an important part of my everyday life. Serving within the Pathway to Adventure Council has allowed me to help organize the first two Youth Recognition Dinners as well as serve as the council’s High Adventure Chair. Professionally, I serve as the Director of the Center for Leadership and Civic Engagement at the University of Illinois at Chicago, where I get to work with our students around leadership, service, civic learning, and democratic engagement.

As I step into the role of Chairman for the PTAC National Eagle Scout Association I am eager to engage with Eagle Scout Alumni from across the council. This is an exciting time for Scouting and we need Eagle Scouts to step up now more than ever. There is no better time than NOW to get engaged back in our local scouting program. You’re never too old or too young to make an impact on a young man teaching him life skills. I hope you will join us at one of our upcoming events or connect with us through our social media channels. I am looking forward to the great opportunity I have to work with NESA and hopefully connecting with you.

Spencer Long

PTAC NESA Chairman

www.NESA.org

If I ever can be of help, you are looking for a way to get connected, have information about an Eagle Scout we should connect with, or simply have a story to share, please do not hesitate to reach out and connect with me, spencer.long@gmail.com.

www.PathwayToAdventure.org/NESA

PATHWAY TO ADVENTURE COUNCIL NATIONAL EAGLE SCOUT ASSOCIATION

Notable Scouts

Noah Reardon

Noah Reardon earned his Eagle Scout Award at the age of 13 and has continued his involved with Scouting ever since through leadership roles at the local and national level. Most recently, Noah served as the Senior Patrol Leader for National Youth Leadership Training.

Outside of Scouting, Noah is an honor student at Lyons Township High School and an avid musician who plays the oboe, saxophone, and classical guitar. He’s also a certified PADI diver and has a Black Belt in Shotokan Karate.

Noah has been heavily involved with STEM programs in Scouting. In fact, he learned of an amazing opportunity called the Ocean Exploration Trust Honors Research Program (OET) during a Boy Scout STEM fair. The OET program took Noah and seven other students from across the country aboard a research vessel called The Nautilus where they worked alongside scientists and engineers to design, build, program, launch and track ocean drifters in the Eastern Pacific Ocean.

Noah has earned numerous first-place awards in Science Olympiad and FIRST® Robotics competitions, among others, at the state and national level. He was also selected to serve as a local judge for the Marine Advanced Technology Education ROV competition.

Noah loves to share his knowledge of STEM with younger kids. He hopes that by introducing young people to STEM early on, they too will develop an inclination toward those critical subjects and careers.

Noah aspires to become a member of an R&D team that designs, builds, and programs robots for applications that make a real impact on how people live, work, and play.

Erinn K. Micek

Erinn was exposed to Scouting at a young age by hanging around her older brother’s Cub Scout meetings and through her own experience in the Girl Scouts. Erinn moved into the BSA in search of more outdoor adventure and soon found an abundance of it. She’s since held a wide range of staff positions at Camp Lakota, joined a Venturing crew and was elected as its president, and earned Venturing’s highest award. Erinn has aged out of the program but has no plans to leave Scouting. She now serves as Crew 808’s advisor.

Marc Cauinian

Marc entered the Sea Scout program with Ship 5924 at the age of 17. He has since taken on many leadership positions, which include serving as the Boatswain of Ship 5924, a member of the 2014 National Sea Scout Youth Task Force, the 2015 Central Region Coordinator of the National Sea Scout Social Media Team, and as a 2015-2016 Central Region Area 7 and 8 Boatswain.

He has raced in several prominent events and even sailed on the Pacific Ocean during Sea Scout Advanced Leadership training. Marc attained the Sea Scout Quartermaster Award in 2015, the highest rank in Sea Scouting.

Heroic Scouts Nate Coirier, a Lake Zurich High School senior, will receive the National

Certificate of Merit for jumping into Class Four whitewater rapids to save his mother who had be thrust into the tumultuous water and laid face down in a hydraulic funnel.

Despite suffering from cerebral palsy, Nate grabbed the raft’s safety line, swam to his mother, and successfully aided her to a rope that led her safely to shore.

James Walsh,13, of Oak Lawn, swiftly called 911 after he spotted a fire on his

neighbor’s porch. He also alerted his neighbor of the fire while his father worked to extinguish it with a garden hose. James will receive the Council Certificate of Merit for his actions.

PATHWAY TO ADVENTURE COUNCIL NATIONAL EAGLE SCOUT ASSOCIATION

National Outstanding Eagle Scout Award Overview

Recognition granted by the local council's NOESA committee to Eagle Scouts who have demonstrated outstanding achievement at the local, state, or regional level; unlike the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award, which is a national award, the NOESA recognizes Eagle Scouts whose efforts have been made closer to home.

Who Can Earn This Award?

Presented by council NESA committees to deserving Eagle Scouts.

How to Get the Award

Every council that awards one to 100 Eagle Scouts in one calendar year may present two NOESA honors in the following calendar year. A council with 101 to 200 Eagle Scouts in a year may present three NOESAs in the following year, and continue to grant an additional NOESA for every 100 Eagle Scouts or fraction thereof awarded beyond that amount. For example, a council with 201 Eagle Scouts would be able to award four NOESA honors.

2016 Pathway to Adventure Council NOESA recipients Jac Charlier

Joseph Kruzan, Jr.

Jac is a criminal justice expert, a veteran, and a trusted and respected community leader with over 25 years of experience bringing citizen-led initiatives to life that build community to solve neighborhood challenges. He considers the values and lessons he learned on his trail to Eagle and the road beyond as foundational to the man, father, citizen, neighbor and leader he is today.

Joseph is a long-time paramedic and fire chief in Schererville, IN. He has made a profound impact on his community and beyond by merging his skillset and love for Scouting. He has served as the executive officer for his fire department’s exploring post, helped launch the National Eagle Scout Association Firefighter’s Affinity Group, and now travels the country hosting informational sessions for firefighter associations to bring awareness to NESA and the affinity group. He has received many awards through Scouting including the prestigious Silver Beaver Award.

Dr. Thomas Jackson

Albin Sporny III

Dr. Thomas Jackson is an esteemed periodontist and prosthodontist with a long and distinguished academic career that started soon after achieving Eagle Scout in 1985. He founded the Chicago Center for Cosmetic & Implant Dentistry in Barrington, IL where he practices full time and has lectured nationally and internationally on topics related to cosmetics and implant dentistry.

Dr. Jackson is an Assistant Scoutmaster of Troop 10 and has two boys who are both on the trail to becoming Eagle Scouts.

Albin is a successful, self-employed practicing attorney who specializes in real estate law.

He chose to become a lawyer because he wanted to help people. Albin’s knowledge of estates has been a great asset to the Council Properties Committee and other organizations including his local church. Albin also volunteers with Respond Now and Public Action to Deliver Shelter (PADS). He has been recognized for his service to Scouting with several prestigious awards including the Silver Beaver and the Vigil Honor.

Dave Wickland David is an accomplished self-employed lawyer at David E. Wickland, Attorney at Law, Professional Corporation with over 40 years of experience. Despite his busy schedule, David still finds time to serve his community as an active Board Member for the Munster Medical Research Foundation of The Community Hospital among other roles. Dave has been an active Scouting volunteer for decades and is a Silver Beaver Award recipient.

PATHWAY TO ADVENTURE COUNCIL NATIONAL EAGLE SCOUT ASSOCIATION

Glenn A. and Melinda Adams National Eagle Scout Service Project of the Year Award

In 2009, the National Eagle Scout Association established the Glenn A. and Melinda W. Adams National Eagle Scout Service Project of the Year Award to recognize valuable service of an exceptional nature by a Scout to a religious institution, a school, community, or other entity. The award recognizes the Scout for his Eagle Scout leadership service project, which is part of the requirements for earning the Eagle Scout Award. Each year, local councils select a council-level winner, and from that pool, each region selects a region-level winner. A national winner is then selected from the four regional finalists.

Past Adams Award Council-level Nominees 2016 K’Von A. Jackson & Daniel Strebar 2015 Austin Keating 2014 Christopher Gloecke

2013 Thomas De La Cruz & Thomas C. Kudla 2012 Mark Graben 2011 Timothy A. Robertson & Alexander Wziontka

2016 Adams Service Project of the Year Award Zachary Thomas Fortuna’s Eagle project was selected to represent all 2016 Eagle Projects as The Glenn A. and Melinda W. Adams National Eagle Scout Service Project of the Year Award. Other notable Eagle Service Project finalists included: Tyler Brossard, Grant Goodall, Stephen Hahn, Sean Anderson, Michael Kanai, Kyle Morrhouse, Kevin Sako and Mark Williams.

Zachary has provided us some insight on his project and its meaning: At the start of the first grade, I joined Cub Scouts and was instantly turned into an avid fan of Scouting. That same summer, I attended my first summer camp. There is where I met a young man who told me his journey to Eagle, earning it at only 13, and I knew from then on that this would be my goal as well.

I knew that to achieve the rank of Eagle, I would need to carry out a service project that would benefit my community in some way. For years, I envisioned using my project to enhance my school in some way, as this is where my mother, my aunt, and later myself would graduate from. However, as I began to approach my decision on a project worthy of being that of an Eagle project, this doubled as the time when my then 4-year-old cousin was diagnosed with stage IV neuroblastoma. After receiving this news, I was absolutely devastated. I didn’t view Chris so much as a cousin, but as a brother. I adored him with everything I had, and we had a bond that was stronger than any other I’ve had with another person. His diagnosis made my world feel as though it was collapsing in on itself. There was nothing that any of us could do to stop this tragedy. I realized though, that there were two options in a situation like this: sit down and let yourself be defeated, or stand and fight with everything you have. My fight came in the form of my Eagle project.

Throughout the months, and later years, that Chris spent in the hospital, I saw that there was always one thing that was able to bring a smile to his face: the toys that he would receive. I knew that in order to honor him, I would have my project benefit the hospital at which he was treated. I hoped by donating toys like the ones he was given during his treatment, I would be able to recreate the joy that he experienced through other patients going through the same treatment. Chris was too ill to be outside at the hospital when the toys were delivered, but he watched the news segment that evening and the smile on his face was priceless. After a long and hard fought battle, Chris passed away just a few weeks after his 7th birthday on November 9, 2016. I am honored to have been chosen as the recipient of the PTAC Adams National Eagle Scout Service Project of the Year Award. For me, this award is more than just about the project and what I accomplished, as it is one of the most amazing ways to honor my little cousin and to help keep his memory alive in our hearts. I know that wherever he is, he is smiling and proud of me. My Eagle project will most definitely go down as one of the best points in my life. I reached my Scouting goal of making Eagle at the age of 13, set a project goal and exceeded it, I was hopefully able to help lift the spirits of many children battling cancer, and most importantly, I was able to honor my then 6-year-old cousin who had been bravely battling stage IV neuroblastoma since he was 4.

Zachary’s project resulted in the collection of 1,987 items with a value of pennies under $15,300. Items including toys, rattles, books, board games, fun socks, slippers, and more were donated to The University of Chicago Medicine - Comer Children’s Hospital with the hopes that they would help make a child’s stay at the hospital a little easier while going through treatment. More information about his project can be found at eagleprojectliftaspirit.weebly.com.

We wish Zachary the best at the Regional level of competition! More information about this award and previous winners can be found at: http://www.nesa.org/adams_award.html

PATHWAY TO ADVENTURE COUNCIL NATIONAL EAGLE SCOUT ASSOCIATION

Youth Recognition Dinner February 25, 2017

Museum of Science and Industry

Each year the Youth Recognition Dinner is always the pinnacle event for the Pathway to Adventure Council’s National Eagle Scout Association Chapter, and this year was no different. This year’s event, held at the Museum of Science and Industry, brought together over 500 scouts and scouters from across Northeast Illinois and Northwest Indiana to celebrate the 2016 class of Eagle Scouts, Venturing Summit Award, and Sea Scout Quartermaster recipients. The evenings program also recognized five Eagle Scout alumni with the National Outstanding Eagle Scout Award.

Besides honoring the 2016 class, the major highlight of the evening was hearing from NASA astronaut and retired colonel, Eagle Scout Gregory Johnson. Col. Johnson presently serves as the President and Executive Director of the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space which is the US government-funded national laboratory with principle research facilities located in the United States portion of the International Space Station. Col. Johnson shared with the group his experiences from space while connecting them with the Scout Law. One major highlight of his speech was having members of Crew 109 in attendance, who are currently working to have their experiment launched to space in August. This project will study the effects of microgravity on Alzheimer’s through the beta amyloid peptide.

During the event Zachary Fortuna was also presented with the 2016 Pathway to Adventure Council National Eagle Scout Association Glenn and Melinda Adams Eagle Scout Service Project of the Year. This award recognizes valuable service of an exceptional nature by a Scout to a religious institution, a school, community, or other entity through his Eagle Scout leadership service project. Zachary’s project provided items to help lift the spirits of children from infancy to adolescence who are battling cancer at The University of Chicago’s– Comer Children’s Hospital. Items included: rattles, books, board games, fun socks, slippers, and much more. His goal was to provide these items to the children to help make their stay at the hospital a little bit easier while going through treatment. He collected 1,987 items valued at $15,300. His project totaled more than 400 hours of service.

PATHWAY TO ADVENTURE COUNCIL NATIONAL EAGLE SCOUT ASSOCIATION

As mentioned earlier, five Eagle Scout alumni were presented with the National Outstanding Eagle Scout Award. The NESA Outstanding Eagle Scout Award is a prestigious recognition granted by the local council’s NESA committee to Eagle Scouts who have demonstrated outstanding achievement at the local, state, or regional level. Unlike the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award, which is a national award, the Outstanding Eagle Scout Award recognizes Eagle Scouts whose efforts have made a positive impact closer to home. Those five individuals recognized were Jac Charlier, Dr. Thomas Jackson, Joseph Kruzan, Jr., Albin J. Sporney III, and David Wickland.

A special treat for the evening was recognizing James Walsh and Nate Coirier who both earned the highest award for heroism given by the National Boy Scouts of America. Nate received the honor after saving his mother from drowning while white water rafting in the Great Smoky Mountains. James received the honor after rushing to the home and alerting his neighbors after discovering their porch was on fire.

This event was not just a premier event for the Pathway to Adventure Council, this was a premier event for the entire Boy Scouts of America. Having watched similar events take place across the country, this event has set a new standard. Mark your calendars now as you won’t want to miss the 2018 Youth Recognition Dinner taking place on March 3.

SAVE THE DATE March 3, 2018

Youth Recognition Dinner Honoring the Class of 2017

Eagle Scouts, Venturing Summit Award Recipients, Sea Scout Quartermaster Award Recipients

Location and details to follow