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Boy Scout Helps Fitness Levels Soar
(December 21, 2009) |
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Joshua Kent (right) and Hayden Howard eye a leveler to ensure the poles of one of the 15 new fitness stations along the running trail at Royal Air Force Lakenheath, England, are correctly aligned. Joshua, a Boy Scout with local Scout Troop 219, initiated this service project to help earn his Eagle Scout badge. U.S. Air Force photo
by Tim Barlow |
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12/17/2009 - ROYAL AIR FORCE LAKENHEATH,
England (AFNS) -- One local Boy Scout's vision,
some brand new equipment locked away in a store
room for more than 13 years, a passion for
fitness, and love for the RAF Lakenheath
community. This is the recipe for the base's new
outdoor fitness stations and for a member of
local Boy Scout Troop 219 being one step closer
to Eagle Scout.
Joshua Kent, 15, took on the project of the
erecting 15 fitness stations along the base's
running trail with the help of his family, a few
active duty Airmen and some of his fellow
scouts.
"I wanted to build something of importance that
would also be long lasting," Joshua said. "I
wanted to build something that didn't just
affect one certain organization but a lot of
people, like the squadrons on base and the high
school sports teams. The RAF Lakenheath |
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community has been extremely helpful to me, and
I felt I should give something back. |
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Joshua, who says he tries to work out regularly when he can
de-conflict doing so with school, work and extracurricular
projects, went on to say he hopes people will use the new
equipment to improve their overall fitness to be more
healthy.
Lt. Col. Debbie Kent, 48th Logistics Readiness Squadron
commander and Joshua's mother, shares her son's hopes for
the new equipment.
"The new fitness stations will offer individuals additional
options, particularly outside when the weather is
enjoyable," she said, adding that the stations will benefit
many people and have a very long-lasting impact on RAF
Lakenheath.
Staff Sgt. Jerry Fruth, 48th Civil Engineer Squadron, and
Senior Airman Alex Andrejkovics, 48th Logistics Readiness
Squadron, assisted with this project and agree the community
will benefit from the equipment.
"Any exercise in addition to running the trail will provide
a better overall workout," said Sergeant Fruth, adding that
the push-up bar is his favorite station.
"These stations will benefit the base by providing a way to
improve muscle strength and endurance," said Airman
Andrejkovics, a vehicle and equipment maintenance mechanic,
who is an Eagle Scout and also serves as an assistant
scoutmaster to Troop 219. "The pull-up station is my
favorite because it exercises your core, back and arms. It
provides the best all around workout in conjunction with
running the trail."
While the general consensus seems to be that the stations
are a welcome addition, not to mention just in time for
Airmen preparing for the Air Force's new PT test standards,
Sergeant Fruth, a structural craftsman whose expertise was
extremely helpful in completing the 192-hour project, says
there's also something more to consider.
"It's good to see today's youth take an interest in helping
out their community," he said.
According to Airman Andrejkovics, being an upstanding member
of the community is one of the fundamentals of being a
scout. He says Joshua used many of the tools learned through
scouting to plan and carry out his project.
"Leadership and accountability are the two that mainly come
to mind," said Airman Andrejkovics. "It is each scout's
responsibility to come up with and carry out each individual
project. That includes budgeting for materials and
equipment, as well as coordinating with various agencies."
In this case, Joshua had to get specialists from the local
British utlilty company's and from the 48th Communications
Squadron to check the grounds for lines and pipes. He then
had to plan out the stations and gather the labor force to
help do the work.
The base already had the equipment for the stations,
equipment that had been delivered May 20, 1996. All of the
other material needed for this project, such as cement,
wooden posts, wheel barrows, etc. were purchased through
Joshua's fund-raising efforts.
"We were shocked to find out the base already had the
equipment, and it made our job much easier in some ways but
harder in others," said Colonel Kent. "There were no
directions and we spent a great deal of time on the Internet
and telephone with the manufacturing company to obtain a set
of instructions, because all we had was a huge pile of
'stuff'."
Even with the challenges encountered, Colonel Kent was
beaming with pride on the chilly weekend the volunteers
erected the stations along the trail. Joshua, in turn, was
very thankful for the support he received throughout this
effort.
"I had a lot of help from my family. Between man hours and
moral support, they were probably the only reason I was
actually able to stay motivated to complete the project," he
said. "Sergeant Furth was extremely helpful as well. He was
one of the first people to show up to help and the last to
leave. Since this sort of project is part of his career
field, he knew a lot more about what we were doing than I
did, so he also played a large role in the completion of the
project."
Joshua also added that he was grateful for the assistance of
Liz and Col. Ken McDonnell, 48th Medical Group commander;
their son, Colin, who is also a Troop 219 scout; and Col.
Blake Lollis, 48th Aerospace Medicine Squadron commander,
and his son Brian, both of whom are Eagle Scouts.
With the project finally complete, Joshua is completing the
final steps to be awarded the rank of Eagle Scout. | |
By USAF Capt. Alysia Harvey
48th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
Copyright 2009
Reprinted from
Air Force News Service
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