NUTLEY, NJ — BSA Troop 147, sponsored by the Franklin Reformed Church of Nutley, held an Eagle Scout Court of Honor on Oct. 25 at VFW Post 493 to present Scouting’s highest honor to Scouts Ethan Wanko and Archer St. Amant.
Senior Patrol Leader David Crecco opened the ceremony with Assistant SPL Joseph Buset leading the presentation of the colors. Guest speakers Mayor Joseph Scarpelli, Commissioner John V. Kelly III, VFW Post Commander Maria Hamlin and Northern N.J. Council District Executive Connor De Leon shared a few inspirational words and expressed their gratitude for all Scouting does for the community.
Troop Committee Chairperson Eric M. Buset then conducted the Eagle ceremony and the Scout reaffirmation, and presented Wanko and St. Amant with their awards. Wanko’s parents, Chris Wanko and Evelyn Martins, and St. Amant’s parents, Paul and Kristen St. Amant, were also presented with their Eagle Parent pins.
Ethan Wanko becomes the 133rd Eagle Scout in Troop 147’s 101-year history, and the first under Scoutmaster Mike DeCarlo. Wanko has been in Scouting for more than 10 years, earning the Arrow of Light, 31 merit badges, two Eagle palms, Order of the Arrow Brotherhood — BSA’s national honor society — and served as Troop 147’s senior patrol leader from 2019-2020. He has logged countless hours of community service, including his Eagle project, which was the restoration of the front porch of the 300-year-old Van Riper House with the assistance of Nutley historian John Demmer and Van Riper House Inc. President Dante Intindola. Wanko is a 2022 graduate of Nutley High School and is currently a student at New Jersey Institute of Technology in Newark, where he studies chemical engineering.
Archer St. Amant becomes the 134th Eagle in the troop’s storied history. He has been in Scouting from Cub Scouts and has earned the Arrow of Light, 40 merit badges, four Eagle Palms, the Pope Pius the XII Catholic Scouting Award and Order of the Arrow Brotherhood. He has served as den chief from 2017-2018, patrol leader from 2018-2019 and assistant senior patrol leader from 2019-2022 and has also been involved in dozens of community service projects throughout his Scouting career. St. Amant’s Eagle project beneficiary was the Essex County Parks Department. He led a team of Scouts and parents in the cleaning and restoration of the Yanticaw Park bocce ball courts. He is currently a senior at Nutley High School and will continue earning awards with Troop 147 until his 18th birthday this coming January.
Photos Courtesy of Eric M. Buset
BSA Troop 147 in Nutley celebrates Scouting’s highest honor added by Editor on
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