Local Boy Scouts seek their Eagle ranks with school projects

Lake Roosevelt Schools may receive a smoking rack for meat and some track and field improvements, courtesy of local Boy Scouts who want to earn the Eagle rank.

Showaway Hunt and Reniff Herndon spoke to the Grand Coulee Dam School District board at their May 30 meeting to get the board's approval for separate projects they are working on to become Eagle Scouts.

Hunt's project is to build a smoking rack for meat. He had spoken to the board earlier in the school year about the project, first to get permission to pursue the project, then to present the details.

Included in Hunt's proposal are diagrams detailing the supplies needed to build the rack, the purpose of each supply, the dimensions (big enough to fit a deer), images of the finished product, and more.

"I was approached by the Indian Education Department at Lake Roosevelt High School asking me if I could help them build a meat drying rack for their cultural gathering activities," reads the proposal written by Hunt, who has been in scouting since first grade.

Hunt also says the rack would be useful for football barbecues.

He showed proposed locations near the current concession stand at the football field, where water is readily available, since smoking meat involves the use of fire.

It still needs to be determined which side of the concession stand the rack will go on, something the board told Hunt to work out with Athletic Director Tim Rasmussen.

Herndon is also looking to earn his Eagle Scout status and proposed updating the long jump and shot put pits for track and field up to regulation standards of the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association.

He explained that the long jump pit needs to be extended and widened to be brought up to current standards, and that the shot put pit needs to have its fair and foul lines redefined, something he said head Track Coach Lori Adkins thought is a good idea that would make practice more effective for competitions.

Herndon hopes to get this project done before the end of the summer with help from tracksters' families, coaches, fellow scouts, and other community members.

The board approved Herndon's project idea, and he will present them with specific details at an upcoming meeting.