June 17, 2004

Patrick Donovan earns Eagle rank

Family and friends gathered to watch Patrick Donovan receive Boy Scout’s highest honor, Eagle Scout, on June 12. Patrick received his Eagle award with another new Eagle Scout, Matt Rimroth. Patrick has been in Troop 294 for seven years.

Patrick and his family moved to Almaden Valley in 1990. He attended Graystone Elementary School, Bret Harte Middle School and recently graduated from Leland High School.

Throughout elementary and middle school, Patrick was involved in baseball and soccer. At Leland High School, he became interested in the band program. For the past four years, he learned and played many percussion instruments in the marching band division. Over these past four years, the band program went through many reorganizations. Last year, however, the small group of kids in marching band took first place at Grand Championships.

Patrick’s interest in the scouting program began when he was in the second grade when he joined Troop 290. He immediately took to the program earning belt loops, Arrow Points, activity badges and moved up the ranks from grade to grade. He loved the Pinewood derby races and lots and lots of camping. He earned his Arrow of Light and bridged over in March 1997 to Troop 294.

Patrick quickly moved up the ranks. In only one and a half years, he advanced from Scout to Tenderfoot to 2nd Class and then to 1st Class. Besides working on all the various badges required to advance, he participated on the bike outings, camping trips, service projects, rifle outings and archery. Seven months later, in February 1999, he earned the next rank of Star and another seven months later in November 1999, he earned his Life rank. He held many leadership positions: den chief, assistant patrol leader, patrol leader, scribe, quartermaster and assistant SPL.

Many of Patrick’s fondest memories in Troop 294 include Camp Oljato, two trips to Philmont National Boyscout Camp in New Mexico, hiking and teaching the younger scouts about scouting. He also fondly remembers the time that his dad was his and the troop’s scoutmaster for two years. There were not so fond memories too—snow camping at Yosemite and getting four feet of snow dumped on his tent overnight.

Patrick’s first Eagle Project was organizing a community blood drive at Leland High School in April 2002. After the planning was set up for it, it was rejected as an Eagle project. Rather than abandon the blood drive all together, he turned it into a service project. It was a big hit and according to the American Red Cross, was more successful than anyone expected. It wasn’t going to be for another one and a half years that he would work on and complete his official Eagle project: designing, planning and installing the walls and shelves in Bret Harte Middle School’s emergency ark. It has been especially rewarding for Patrick to perform the project there since he is a Bret Harte graduate.

As for the immediate future, Patrick will attend Arizona State University in Tempe, Ariz. this fall, where he plans on majoring in secondary education with a math concentration. He said he will take what he learned in boy scouting and incorporate it into the classroom as he teaches his high school math students.