5 minute read
A Mountain Brook student launches his Eagle Scout project
KIDS WHO SHINE GRAYSON HYDINGER, 15
BY STEPHANIE GIBSON LEPORE
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Frank Tsuru, President of the National Eagle Scout Association, says, “Eagle Scouts are one of our country’s greatest resources for good.” There are more than 145,000 National Eagle Scout Association members around the world—and 15-year-old Grayson Hydinger plans to join this elite group soon.
At first, the Mountain Brook tenth grader says he only joined the Boy Scouts “because of a resume thing.” “My dad wasn’t involved in scouting,” Grayson says. “I started with three things as a resume builder. As I got more involved, not to be cliché, but I learned how special it is.” He says that happened pretty immediately, right after his first campout. “By the second one, I got an idea of how dynamic of a troop this was, how advancement works, and what it would take. I fell in love with the idea of making it—how momentous and rewarding that would be. Scouts is definitely not just something to put down on your resume.”
As he approaches his fifth year of scouting in Troop 86, under the leadership of Scoutmaster David Dowd, Grayson is working toward completion of his Eagle Scout project. “The project is probably the most well-known aspect to others,” he says. “But there are a lot of other requirements to get there.”
The Boy Scouts badge system includes 21 merit badges; 13 are required for Eagle Scout plus at least an additional 8 elective badges out of 200 choices like swimming, family life, wilderness survival, nuclear science, and even small boat sailing. Rising through the ranks also includes achieving Life Scout, which includes service hours to advance to Eagle. “Service is a huge part of self and community, and it’s a huge part of advancement in Scouts,” says Grayson. He also completed required fitness and navigation skills, like using a map and compass on a 5-mile hike and cooking meals on campouts.
When it came time to choose an Eagle Scout project, Grayson had no plans to slack off after all the work it took to get there. “The whole point of the project is to show leadership,” he says. “That’s the whole criteria—if they deem it doesn’t require leadership, there’s no approval.”
“I knew I wanted to go big with mine. I love
PHOTO COURTESY OF GRAYSON HYDINGER
Grayson Hydinger, a Boy Scout working toward his Eagle Scout distinction, aims to bring a new dog park to his community.
taking my dogs—Gru and Stark—to the dog park, and I noticed that there was not one any closer to the Mountain Brook Village area than the park on Overton Road. I knew many people already walk their dogs along Jemison Trail, so I started looking at what sites were available along the trail for a smaller, pedestrian dog park to possibly go into.” He acknowledges there were concerns around getting approval and raising money, but “I addressed them during meetings, and when I first met with everyone at age 14, I had four years to complete the project. This is not a side gig or a “maybe I’ll work on it” kind of thing. I want to see it through.” Because he had to work sequentially, Grayson’s meetings took place over several months, beginning in early February with the Vulcan District of the Eagle Board Review. “That was the first step of approval,” he says. “I had to explain the project and they determined if my idea was feasible.” He received contingency approval pending approval from four agencies: Parks and Recreation, Board of Education, Planning Commission, and City Council.
What followed next was a series of proposals, emails and meetings. Grayson first met with Shanda Williams, director of the Mountain Brook Parks and Recreation department, in a meeting he describes as “very productive.” “I realized the wooded area by Mountain Brook Elementary’s practice field was available,” he says. With help from Tommy Prewitt, director of facilities at the Board of Education, and Ashley McCombs, principal of the elementary school, Grayson
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