Thursday, December 12, 2024
An atmosphere of triumph, congratulations — and most of all, love — radiated from the smiling crowd that packed the Regan Hall auditorium at St. George’s Episcopal Church on Saturday.
The occasion was the Troop 300 Eagle Scout Court of Honor ceremony. No less than six troop members had achieved the rank of Eagle Scout during 2023 and 2024.
Fr. Sean Wallace, rector of St. George’s and Chartered Organization Executive for Troop 300, delivered the opening invocation.
The new Eagle Scouts were Esias Ellis, Steven Galdamez, Kyree Redd, Jeremiah Soto, Ahmand Tillery, and Jahmeir Tillery.
To become an Eagle Scout, a Boy Scout must rise through the prior five ranks of Scout membership, earning a minimum of 21 merit badges, in disciplines ranging from first aid to environmental science. All six new Eagle Scouts had earned well beyond the required number of badges.
In fact, Uniondale High School student and St. George’s member Esias Ellis had racked up 130 of the possible 138 merit badges offered by the Boy Scouts of America. He was also honored for his membership on the Ceremonial Team of the Order of the Arrow, the Scout International Honor Society.
Jeremiah Soto was unable to attend the ceremony because he is now a Private First Class in the U.S. Marine Corps. His mother, Renaye Soto, accepted his Eagle Scout neckerchief and pin in his absence. A special callout went to Carolyn Morant, a Roosevelt resident and decades-long member of St. George’s. Her son, Scott “La Rock” Sterling, had risen to high popularity in the 1980s hip-hop scene. He died of bullet wounds in 1987 while trying to calm a neighborhood dispute in the South Bronx. In 2001, Morant decided to start Troop 300 at St. George’s in his honor. She proudly saw her grandson, Edward Morant III, earn the troop’s first Eagle Scout pin in 2010.
In addition to Boy Scouts officials from around Long Island, local politicians also attended the ceremony: Nassau County Legislators Scott Davis and Siela Bynoe, Hempstead Mayor Waylyn Hobbs, Jr., Hempstead Village Trustee Noah Burroughs, Hempstead School Board Vice President and Dean of Students Jeffrey Spencer, and Hempstead High School Principal Stephen Strachan.
“I have been part of quite a few Eagle ceremonies here at St. George’s Episcopal Church,” said Bynoe. “I saw Nsikak Ekong being awarded his Eagle Scout pin here, and now he is the Scoutmaster.
"Remember," she added, "be a good steward over everything this community and this church and this family has afforded to you.”
“The things that you do will lead to greater heights,” said Burroughs, “and to being leaders in this community and other communities as well.”
“Some of these young men are students at Hempstead High School,” said Strachan. “Keep up the good work! We are very proud of you.”
