Brennan Earns Eagle Scout Honor With Sacred Heart Landscaping Project
March 30, 2021 at 12:06 a.m.
Brennan Earns Eagle Scout Honor With Sacred Heart Landscaping Project
By David [email protected]
“Tonight I will actually be awarded the actual award, but I’ve had my papers turned in since June,” the 18-year-old said Monday afternoon at Sacred Heart School and Church, 125 N. Harrison St., Warsaw, before the Court of Honor.
Benjamin, the son of Jim and Jamie Brennan, has been involved in Scouting for about eight years. As part of earning his Eagle Scout award – the highest achievement of rank attainable in the Boy Scouts of America – Benjamin had to do a community service project. He chose to do his project at Sacred Heart.
“The project is actually this strip of landscaping that you see (on the south side of the building). Before, it was just some grass, and so me and our Troop, we marked it off and then we dug a trench to have an outline. And then we tilled up the whole ground and everything. Got rid of all the sod, and then we put some tarp down, laid some gravel and dug holes,” he explained.
They planted about 56 plants, including euonymus, juniper, sedum and hamein grass.
Asked why he chose this particular project, Benjamin said, “Because Sacred Heart has been a very big part of Troop 819, and they’ve helped us. They’ve housed meetings for us, and they’ve been a part of a lot of things we do as a Troop, and not to mention I went here for nine years, from pre-K to sixth grade, so that helps, too.”
He said doing the project for Sacred Heart “felt good” and “I’d rather do something for them than anybody else.”
The project had a bit of a cost to it, but Benjamin was able to get most of the supplies donated by businesses, as well as other donations.
“So, where we couldn’t get a donation, there was an at-cost or some sort of discount from the suppliers that we got materials from,” Benjamin said.
Open Air Garden provided the plants, while G & G Hauling & Excavating supplied the rock. The metal edging came from Lowe’s, while the landscaping cloth and some machinery came from Joel Wihebrink Landscaping. Stock + Field contributed weed killer. Brennan’s grandfather, Derek Ruttan, provided a financial donation toward the project.
“Scott Charlton, somebody who lives in my neighborhood, he helped us lay all the rock with a front loader. So he donated his time and his machine to help us. And, honestly, this project wouldn’t have gotten done without him,” Benjamin said.
He said about 15 Scouts from Troop 819, sponsored by the Knights of Columbus, helped him on the project. Combining everyone’s hours, he estimated over 1,000 hours were put into the landscape project.
Jim said Benjamin’s landscaping is 10 feet deep by 150 feet long, and 3 to 4 inches deep.
Benjamin started the paperwork on the project in January 2020, gathering materials in March/April 2020.
“We actually had to pull the project pretty close before the deadline, but due to COVID and everything, we really had to take some time out,” he said. “But, the Scouting people did actually have some sort of extension for us because all of the Eagle Scouts that year all dealt with similar issues. So, thankfully, we did get the whole project done and all my paperwork turned in before June 12, my birthday.”
He guessed it took three weeks of labor to actually get the project completed.
Just a couple of hours before receiving the Eagle Scout honor, Benjamin said he was excited.
“It’s really exciting because I felt like an Eagle Scout, I guess, since I turned in my paperwork and got the receipt that I did that. But, my uniform still has that Life Scout patch on it so it’s really going to be nice to get the certificate, get the patches, the award, get the medal and then it will really feel real at that point,” he said.
Benjamin encouraged others to get involved in Scouting.
“It goes a lot more than just for you. It contributes to a lot of other people’s lives and institutions,” he said.
Sacred Heart’s Father Jonathan Norton said, “I’m just happy we’re a part of it. I support them and other Boy Scouts here in the parish and in the area.”
While Boy Scouts have done other projects around the Sacred Heart campus, Norton said this is the first one they’ve done in the three years he’s been at Sacred Heart.
“It was just actually really kind of inspiring and awesome to see how he got the guys coordinated, and then he was out here every day just watering his little baby plants. It was really good to see, and I’m really proud of him. I’m glad that we got the fruits of that labor, as well,” Norton said.
“Tonight I will actually be awarded the actual award, but I’ve had my papers turned in since June,” the 18-year-old said Monday afternoon at Sacred Heart School and Church, 125 N. Harrison St., Warsaw, before the Court of Honor.
Benjamin, the son of Jim and Jamie Brennan, has been involved in Scouting for about eight years. As part of earning his Eagle Scout award – the highest achievement of rank attainable in the Boy Scouts of America – Benjamin had to do a community service project. He chose to do his project at Sacred Heart.
“The project is actually this strip of landscaping that you see (on the south side of the building). Before, it was just some grass, and so me and our Troop, we marked it off and then we dug a trench to have an outline. And then we tilled up the whole ground and everything. Got rid of all the sod, and then we put some tarp down, laid some gravel and dug holes,” he explained.
They planted about 56 plants, including euonymus, juniper, sedum and hamein grass.
Asked why he chose this particular project, Benjamin said, “Because Sacred Heart has been a very big part of Troop 819, and they’ve helped us. They’ve housed meetings for us, and they’ve been a part of a lot of things we do as a Troop, and not to mention I went here for nine years, from pre-K to sixth grade, so that helps, too.”
He said doing the project for Sacred Heart “felt good” and “I’d rather do something for them than anybody else.”
The project had a bit of a cost to it, but Benjamin was able to get most of the supplies donated by businesses, as well as other donations.
“So, where we couldn’t get a donation, there was an at-cost or some sort of discount from the suppliers that we got materials from,” Benjamin said.
Open Air Garden provided the plants, while G & G Hauling & Excavating supplied the rock. The metal edging came from Lowe’s, while the landscaping cloth and some machinery came from Joel Wihebrink Landscaping. Stock + Field contributed weed killer. Brennan’s grandfather, Derek Ruttan, provided a financial donation toward the project.
“Scott Charlton, somebody who lives in my neighborhood, he helped us lay all the rock with a front loader. So he donated his time and his machine to help us. And, honestly, this project wouldn’t have gotten done without him,” Benjamin said.
He said about 15 Scouts from Troop 819, sponsored by the Knights of Columbus, helped him on the project. Combining everyone’s hours, he estimated over 1,000 hours were put into the landscape project.
Jim said Benjamin’s landscaping is 10 feet deep by 150 feet long, and 3 to 4 inches deep.
Benjamin started the paperwork on the project in January 2020, gathering materials in March/April 2020.
“We actually had to pull the project pretty close before the deadline, but due to COVID and everything, we really had to take some time out,” he said. “But, the Scouting people did actually have some sort of extension for us because all of the Eagle Scouts that year all dealt with similar issues. So, thankfully, we did get the whole project done and all my paperwork turned in before June 12, my birthday.”
He guessed it took three weeks of labor to actually get the project completed.
Just a couple of hours before receiving the Eagle Scout honor, Benjamin said he was excited.
“It’s really exciting because I felt like an Eagle Scout, I guess, since I turned in my paperwork and got the receipt that I did that. But, my uniform still has that Life Scout patch on it so it’s really going to be nice to get the certificate, get the patches, the award, get the medal and then it will really feel real at that point,” he said.
Benjamin encouraged others to get involved in Scouting.
“It goes a lot more than just for you. It contributes to a lot of other people’s lives and institutions,” he said.
Sacred Heart’s Father Jonathan Norton said, “I’m just happy we’re a part of it. I support them and other Boy Scouts here in the parish and in the area.”
While Boy Scouts have done other projects around the Sacred Heart campus, Norton said this is the first one they’ve done in the three years he’s been at Sacred Heart.
“It was just actually really kind of inspiring and awesome to see how he got the guys coordinated, and then he was out here every day just watering his little baby plants. It was really good to see, and I’m really proud of him. I’m glad that we got the fruits of that labor, as well,” Norton said.
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