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Kasson Eagle Scout Receives Pope Pius XII Medal
Oliver Sohm, an Eagle Scout and member of Holy Family Parish in Kasson, recently earned the Pope Pius XII Religious Recognition Medal. He was recognized in a ceremony at Holy Family Church on Sunday, June 2, along with four other scouts from the parish - Brock, Quin, Dylon and Grady Weis - who, in 2023, earned the Ad Altare Dei Medal.
At the ceremony, Oliver's father, Phil Sohm, and pastor, Fr. John Lasuba, were each presented with a "parent pin" in recognition of their assistance and support of Oliver's effort.
Rob Thompson, who has been encouraging local scouts to earn religious recognition awards since the 1980s, has seen more than 100 Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts receive awards in that time, but he says Oliver is the first scout he has seen complete this level of award.
The Pope Pius XII Medal is monitored by the National Catholic Committee on Scouting via their Religious Emblem Committee. The program is intended for older (16-18 year old) scouts and focuses on vocations and how to more fully develop a Christion way of life within a faith community.
Oliver worked on the medal for over nine months. Between it and his earlier work on the Ad Altare Dei Medal, he met with Fr. Brian Mulligan (scouting contact for the Diocese of Winona-Rochester) and Fr. John Lasuba, as well as Deacon Ben Peters and seminarian Alex Peters, who are both originally from Holy Family Parish.
