By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor
The Troop 223 Boy and Girls Troops convened their annual National Eagle Courts of Honor on the evenings of November 20 and 21 in Sprague Center at St. Matthew’s, recognizing Pacific Palisades’ new Eagle Scouts.
On Monday, November 20, 12 members from Troop 223G were elevated to Eagle Scout—the highest rank in the program.
Girls have been a part of Boy Scouts of America since February 2019. This group of girls is the last of the founding members of Troop 223G.
In addition to dozens of hikes and campouts throughout California, they had to complete a two-week hike at Philmont, High Adventure trips at The Denmark Jamboree, Desolation Wilderness in Tahoe and a hike in the Pacific Northwest, along with summer camp on Catalina Island.
Scoutmaster Michael Lanning offered some sage words for the girls at the end of his speech, saying: “The mountain is waiting, get on with your climb.”
The dynamic dozen in this year’s Troop 223G Eagle Scout Court of Honor—many of them Palisadians—were Isabella Ekstein, Evgenia Rink, Blaise Ferraro, Rashna Vaghaiwalla, Greyson Weaver, Stephanos Morning, Celine Moshrefi, Isabella Pekarovic, Beatrice Kibler, Carly Crane, Kelly Wagenseller and Brooke Chopiuk.
Stepping to the podium to open the proceedings on Tuesday, November 21, was 2021 Eagle Scout Bill Coleman. Next came the presentation of colors and flag salute by Assistant Senior Patrol Leader Carson Bartley, followed by the invocation from fellow Assistant Senior Patrol Leader Kholin Young.
Then, one by one, the 25 new Eagle Scout candidates representing the Troop 223 boys were called up to the stage, each having his own presenter who shared a story about the candidate’s journey.
Here are the candidates, as well as their number of merit badges earned:
Eashan Barber, 31 badges; Declan Seamus Sommer Childress, all Eagle and 223 badges required plus Shotgun and Scuba; James Fields Coleman, 35 badges; Logan Robert Eskigan, 42 badges; Nolan Preston Freyer, 36 badges; Jared Milton Gold, 26 badges; Lucas Raphael Evan Gold, 26 badges; Samuel Ross Harris III, 24 badges; Andrew George Kibler, 29 badges; Charles Eric Kline, 26 badges; Jack Alexander Musitano, 26 badges; Brendan O’Malley, 26 badges; Justin Patrick Pack, 28 badges; Samson Xavier Plant, 26 badges; Hayden Prince, 27 badges; Nicholas Kawena Quilici, 27 badges; Charles Keawe Roarke, 25 badges; Luca Rosenmayr, 26 badges; Howard Theodore Rowen, 21 badges; Colby Parker Rubin, 35 badges; Joshua Maclean Snyder, 30 badges; Odino Florino Spadavecchia, 33 badges; Jackson Levin Terris, 36 badges; Rishad Behram Vaghaiwalla, 37 badges; and Ethan Youn, 23 badges.
Each candidate had a medal pinned to his uniform shirt by his parents, and after that, Lanning recognized all of the Eagle Scouts in attendance and imparted words of wisdom.
“Anyone who has questions about whether the future will be bright should look at these young men and have hope,” Lanning said. “You’ve hiked the hike, you crossed the rivers. You’re gonna hit some tough times but the force is inside you and it’s different than anyone else’s. It’s indefatigable. It will never fail you, never weaken, never not be there. How do you access it? Simply say, ‘I’m an Eagle Scout.’ It will pop up and carry you. Now get on with your climb.”
A longtime Palisadian, Lanning was named Citizen of the Year in 2022 by Pacific Palisades Community Council and has been Scoutmaster of Troop 223 for seven decades, witnessing approximately 1,000 members become Eagle Scouts.
Enzo Delcolliano, Emmett Haggenmiller and Sam Hastings offered congratulatory citations, after which the Eagle Awards were presented and closing remarks made by Lanning and Assistant Scoutmaster Andy Hubsch. Last came the benediction, given by Senior Patrol Leader Lucas Levens.
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