A Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent. That’s the Boy Scout Law. 

Each adjective describes Sam Harvey, who became the 35th Boy Scout in Whitefish Troop 1936 to attain the rank of Eagle Scout at a recent court of honor. His name joined those of his older brothers, Joe and Joshua, on the Troop’s roster of Eagle Scouts. 

The trio earned the highest rank in scouting, the Eagle Scout, and the Arrow of Light, the highest achievement in Cub Scouts. Only 4% of scouts have attained Eagle Scout status, and fewer have earned both honors.  

“To get your Eagle Scout, you need a project that will benefit your community. What that is, is completely up to you,” Harvey said. “My brothers did other projects -- one built a fence for a community garden; another planted a forest.  

“My project was clearing about 5,000 square feet of land to put in a community garden,” he added. 

The Moose Lodge is the charter organization for Troop 1936 and allows them to use their building for weekly meetings. Harvey got the idea for his project when he overheard some Moose members talking about having a community garden. 

“They have a small, maybe like 100 feet, of land that they have there for a garden,” he said. “There was a whole other 5,000 square feet of land that was completely untamed. 

“It was complete bushwacking,” the Eagle Scout said of his labor. “They had many trees, some big trees. We found pieces of car wreck. The amount of trash that we pulled from the land alone, was crazy.” 

The scout is responsible for all aspects of the community project, from choosing a task to assembling a team to supplying schedules and checklists. Harvey said the Cub Scouts helped, along with adults who handled the power tools. 

“When you make an Eagle Scout project, you have to plan everything, which includes making yourself a team,” he said. “You have to keep track of their hours, what everyone does.” 

Harvey worked 127 hours on his clearing project. 

There is more to the rank up than the physical work inherent in the project. Gary Carmichel is the assistant scout master who helped Harvey prepare for the required interview.  

Harvey said every merit badge comes with its share of intellectual challenges. 

“A lot of merit badges are a ton of mental work. The citizenship merit badges are some of the thinker ones,” he said. “They really challenge you because you have to learn all the different terms for what it means to be a citizen of the world, the nation, the community.” 

He said each time a scout earns a higher rank, he must determine how his characteristics meet the demands of the badge and give an example of how he exemplifies it “in real life.” 

“Every merit badge makes you learn terms, but it’s all part of the fun,” he added. 

Harvey has earned many merit badges, including one for using a shotgun, swimming, and operating a motorboat.  

“You see all these memories and experiences and you think back on them and they're some of the most fun you can do,” he said, recalling the hours he spent earning his badges. “Would I rather be inside playing a video or watching a show when I could be outside with the Boy Scouts talking through nautical terms and sailing around on boats? Which one sounds way more fun?” 

His parents, Kathyrn and John, said they are very proud of Sam. The whole Harvey family is involved with scouts. In addition to his two Eagle Scout brothers, his dad is the troop’s scoutmaster. Harvey’s younger sister, Elise, is involved in scouting, too, with the American Heritage Girls. 

Harvey will turn 18 next month, thus ending 10 years of scouting, with the highest honors he could have achieved. 

    Whitefish Scout, Sam Harvey, earned the rank of Eagle Scout. (Photo provided)