They walked on the moon, led a nation, built a retail empire and captured imagination on the silver screen. What do former President Gerald Ford, Astronaut Neil Armstrong, Walmart Founder Sam Walton and Film Director Steven Spielberg have in common? They’re not just successful people — they are all Eagle Scouts.
The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) was first founded in 1910 by William Boyce. He was influenced by Lord Robert Baden-Powell, who founded England’s Scouting Movement in 1907. As the story goes, Boyce was lost in London on a business trip. He asked a boy how to get to his hotel. After the boy directed him, Boyce offered him a tip. The boy declined, explaining that he was in scouts and was just “do[ing] a good turn daily,” the future slogan of BSA.
The BSA underwent several changes since its inception; the biggest change occurred in 2019 when it began letting girls into troops. Following this, they promptly changed their name to Scouts BSA. On their 115th anniversary, the program was renamed to Scouting America, reflecting the organization’s commitment to welcoming every youth in America to experience the benefits of Scouting.
To reach the rank of Eagle, a scout must first achieve all six preceding ranks. In addition to achieving these ranks, a scout must earn at least 21 merit badges. 14 of which are required, with the remaining seven being merit badges of interest to the scout. Additionally, the scout must be active for at least six months after reaching Life Scout, the rank right before Eagle. As a Life Scout, the individual must also serve in a leadership role for at least six months. They must also request six letters of recommendation from a parent, religious leader, employer, teacher and two other references, as well as plan a service project that demonstrates leadership and helps their community.
However, less than 10% of those who join the organization earn the rank of Eagle. Nine Green Hope students who, despite the percentages, achieved the rank of eagle. Eagle Scout service project hours are measured by man-hours, meaning that if the scout has a group of 10 volunteers who each do an hour of work, that counts as 10 hours.
Sarah El-Shafei (’25), a member of Troop 226G, earned her Eagle Scout rank on Jan. 9, 2025. She first joined scouting when she was 16 years old. During El-Shafei’s time in scouting, she served in many roles within her troop, as well as the local chapter of the Order of the Arrow (OA), the scouting’s national honor society. Within her troop, El-Shafei has been Assistant Senior Patrol Leader, Historian and Scribe. While in the Netami Chapter of the OA, El-Shafei has served as the Vice Chief (VC) of Finance.
For her project, she built two benches and a rock garden with kind messages on the rocks. El-Shafei worked alongside her eagle coach to create a meaningful project, finishing with a total of about 190 man-hours. While completing the project, El-Shafei faced several hurdles, but with the help of her mentor and fellow scouts, she was able to overcome them head-on. El-Shafei shared one such difficulty: “Unexpected materials issues, we had to recut the wood and several drill bits broke,” she said.
One of her favorite experiences in scouting was “Going to Conclave with the Order of the Arrow,” El-Shafei said. The 2025 conclave for Section E8 of the Order of the Arrow was held at Camp Cherokee. This event had 900 scouts all across North Carolina. Here, members of the Order of the Arrow could trade patches, visit scouting booths and compete in games.
Botao Feng (’25), a member of Troop 204, earned his Eagle Scout rank on April 11, 2024. Feng has been in scouts since he was 13 years old. During his time in the troop, he served in multiple leadership positions. Among them were the Quartermaster and Patrol leader. Feng, like El-Shafei, was the VC of Finance for the Netami Chapter of the OA.
For his project, he decided to build a play bridge at a church. Feng’s project had a total of 85 man-hours. Just like any project, Feng faced setbacks. He elaborated on one such setback, “Communication on my expectations for how it should be built was challenging,” he said.
Feng shared one of his favorite memories in scouting, “I really enjoyed going to Northern Tier, with my troop. We were on the United States side of the border. We canoed and portaged about 50 miles,” he said.
DJ Hoffman (’25), a member of Troop 208, earned his Eagle Scout Rank on June 13, 2024. He first joined scouting when he was only 11 years old. Since then, Hoffman served in multiple leadership positions, including Outdoor Ethics Guide and Assistant Patrol Leader.
For his project, he decided to build a bike rack at the church where his troop meets. Hoffman’s project had a total of 72 man-hours. Part of the paperwork while completing Eagle is to reflect on a challenge they faced during it. Hoffman elaborated on a challenge he faced, elaborated on one such challenge, “When we were building the bike rack, we had to relocate shrubbery from the surrounding area,” Hoffman said.
One of Hoffman’s favorite memories in scouting was going to an island in Virginia. He elaborated on what made it so special, “My friends and I canoed to an island with all of our stuff. We stayed there for two days and went in the water,” Hoffman said.
Sarah Hussain (’25), a member of Troop 199G, earned her Eagle Scout Rank on Feb. 13, 2025. She has been in scouts since 2023, only four years since girls were first allowed to join scout troops. Hussain has served as Senior Patrol Leader and Junior Assistant Scoutmaster since joining her troop.
When deciding what her project would be, Hussain decided to give back to her mosque. She built bookshelves for the youth center. Her project had a total of 65 man-hours. Hussain elaborated on a setback she faced during her project, “a lot of my volunteers were younger scouts. Therefore, it was harder to communicate the tasks at hand. Another challenge that we faced was the weather because of a storm that came through we had to move to the garage,” she said.
Hussain shared a memorable experience in scouting, “Meeting new people from different backgrounds is one of the best things that scouting has to offer. Also, seeing others’ leadership develop over time and even my personal growth,” she said.
Evan Koo (’25), a member of Troop 226, earned his Eagle Scout rank on Sep. 12, 2024. He first joined scouting in 2017. During his time in scouting, Koo served in multiple leadership positions, including Assistant Senior Patrol Leader, Den Chief and Troop Guide.
Koo decided to build a partitioned wall for a nonprofit organization in Raleigh, called With Love From Jesus. He had about 93 man-hours for his project. Koo shared a challenge he faced during his project: “A challenge I faced was moving boards through a door in order to attach all the boards inside to build the partitioned wall,” he said.
Koo shared his favorite experience in scouting: “My favorite scout experience was whitewater rafting at my first summer camp with my troop at Camp Daniel Boone,” he said.
Jake Marmura (’26), a member of Troop 216, earned his Eagle Scout rank on Jan. 11, 2024. Jake Marmura has been in scouts since he was in first grade. He has served in a wide variety of leadership roles: Order of the Arrow Troop Representative, Historian and Assistant Senior Patrol Leader.
For his project, Marmura decided to refurbish a flower bed for a Saint Andrews Catholic Church preschool and also built a mini garden beside it. He had a total of 90 man-hours. Marmura shared a setback he faced during his project, “leading new scouts, who hadn’t used tools before, and they weren’t used to landscaping, didn’t know what to do,” he said.
He shared his favorite experience in scouting, “Sea Base was probably my favorite experience. We snorkeled and sailed for an entire week. During our time snorkeling, we saw Coral Reef habitats and turtles,” Jake Marmura said.
Thomas Marmura (’26), a member of Troop 216, earned his Eagle Scout rank on Mar. 14, 2024. During his time in scouting, he has served in a wide range of leadership positions: Patrol Leader, Troop Guide and Junior Assistant Scoutmaster. Thomas Marmura, like Feng and El-Shafei, was the VC of Finance for the Netami Chapter of the OA.
For his project, Thomas Marmura decided to build a little library. He had a total of about 168 man-hours. Thomas Marmura shared a setback he faced during his project: “Communication between my beneficiary at times was hard. We also found it difficult to match the right paint as we had to travel between the site and the paint store,” he said.
He shared his favorite experience in scouting: “My favorite experience was Northern Tier. We did a combination of portaging and canoeing, probably totaling nearly 120 miles. We were on the Canadian side in the Manitoba Province,” Thomas Marmura said.
Paul Morrow (’27), a member of Troop 216, earned his Eagle Scout rank on Mar. 14, 2024. During his time in scouting, he has served in a wide range of leadership positions: Senior Patrol Leader, Troop Guide and Assistant Senior Patrol Leader.
For his project, Morrow decided to build and paint garbage containers for a Baseball club. He had a total of 50 man-hours. Morrow shared a setback he faced during his project: “It was sometimes difficult to convey to my volunteers exactly what I wanted them to do,” he said.
He shared his favorite experience in scouting, “Summiting Baldy at Philmont. Not only was summiting Baldy a great and memorable experience. The journey before summiting was also great as it was challenging and led to our group bonding together,” Morrow said.
Dhruv Praveen (’27), a member of Troop 216, earned his Eagle Scout rank on July 11, 2024.
During his time in scouting, he served as a Patrol Leader.
For his project, Praveen decided to paint, stain the steps and cement the walkway. He had a total of 50 man-hours. Praveen shared a setback he faced during his project: “The work was difficult and leaders had to help,” he said.
Praveen shared his favorite experience in scouting: “Going to summer camp at Camp Durant with my troop.” Camp Durant is the local Occoneechee Council’s summer camp. Camp Durant is 62 miles southwest of Green Hope. Camp Durant has a rock climbing tower, a gun range, a waterfront, a fish camp and ATV and biking trails. Camp Durant also offers over 50 merit badges.
All nine of these scouts have contributed meaningfully to their local community. These Eagle Scouts have lived up to the ideals of scouting. These experiences will last a lifetime and will be sure to give back to the community further. Exemplified in the saying, “Once an Eagle, Always an Eagle.”
