Three teens from Hillsborough Boy Scout Troop 489 were recently awarded special proclamations from the Hillsborough Township Committee for becoming the community’s latest group of Eagle Scouts, attaining the highest rank in Boy Scouts.
Galen Fritz, Alexander Fung and Benjamin Elliott were publicly honored by the governing body earlier this month. All three scouts donated their time and effort to help local Girl Scouts by refurbishing parts of the Oak Spring Girl Scout Camp.
McCauley said the boys were “an example to the youth of Hillsborough Township through [their] high level leadership and community service” during the January 9 committee meeting.
Fung, a senior at Hillsborough High School, was honored for completing his eagle scout project, which consisted of managing 32 volunteers that worked a total of 210 hours to build a shelter at Oak Spring Girl Scout Camp to house a tractor backhoe attachment, in an effort to protect the attachment’s hoses from the sun.
The teen was patrol leader, senior patrol leader, troop guide and quartermaster of Troop 489.
He is also a member of the Hillsborough High School Orchestra, playing double bass and serves as treasurer for the orchestra. Additionally, Alexander is a member of the National Honor Society, German Honor Society and Odyssey of the Mind team at Hillsborough Reformed Church.
“I’d like to thank my parents for sticking with me through my journey to the Eagle Scout rank and with my project,” he said.
Fritz, a 2017 graduate of Hillsborough High School and current freshman at Penn State University, earned the Eagle rank after completing his project to demolish and replace a retaining wall at Oak Spring Girl Scout Camp.
With help from 25 volunteers that included some of his fellow troop members from Troop 489, Fritz worked a total of 258 hours to complete the project that helped shore up the decking and foundation of the main hall at the camp.
Galen was Librarian, Quartermaster and Den Chief of Troop 489. He was also a member of the Hillsborough High School soccer team, travel soccer team, Hillsborough Baseball league and played the alto saxophone in Hillsborough High School Jazz Band and Concert Band.
Elliott, like Fung, is a current senior at Hillsborough High School and was recently honored for completing his Eagle Scout project on his way to becoming an Eagle Scout himself.
His project consisted of refurbishing an unsafe deck at Oak Spring Girl Scout Camp, where he managed 26 volunteers that worked a total of 207 hours. During that time, he coordinated the removal of rotten wood, replacing it with new decking and adding an ADA-compliant ramp. Elliot also served as patrol leader and librarian of Troop 489 and participated on Hillsborough High School Varsity Golf Team.
“I’d like to definitely thank my parents for pushing me, I definitely wouldn’t have gotten as far without them,” he said. “I’d also like to thank Troop 489 for being my troop and helping by volunteering for my project.”
