By VICKI BROWN
vbrown@lowcountry.com
Family and friends gathered at Gladys Whiddon Park on Monday afternoon, April 12th to see Boy Scout Troop 686 make a presentation to the City of Walterboro.
The troop gifted a bat exhibit box, bat box, owl box and several handicapped accessible picnic tables for the parks.
As part of the requirements to achieve Eagle Scout rank, a major community project must be completed. The project must be one that benefits others. Tommy O’Quinn, in his quest to reach Eagle Scout, constructed several picnic tables with the help of the rest of troop 686, that will be available and delivered to several parks in the city.
These picnic tables are unusual in that they are accessible to people in wheelchairs or for those who are not able to sit on a picnic table bench. The tables are all embossed with plaques stating their purpose and designation as gifts to the people of Walterboro.
O’Quinn says he got the idea after going to Ireland Creek and seeing that they needed a picnic table. From there he developed the idea of handicapped picnic tables. There will be anchor points throughout the city and the tables will be able to be moved throughout the city.
The 15-year-old-scout has been through six levels so far in scouting, but needed a major project to move forward to Eagle Scout rank. After this project, he will have to go before a board for interviews. If he passes, he will reach Eagle rank and have a ceremony and receive his patch.
His parents are John and Melissa O’Quinn, and one month ago, John found himself taking on the role of Scout Master when the former master retired after 20 years.
“Tommy is a good kid, a dedicated kid. He got into scouting at an early age and worked his way up. Now he is ready to be an Eagle. I am truly proud of him,” said John O’Quinn. “He has done something that I wish I had done when I was younger. These boys are great; I really enjoy watching them grow and learn leadership skills.”
Ryan McLeod, parks director for Walterboro, was grateful for the donation and has big plans for the tables.
“There will be anchor points throughout the city so that the tables can be moved to various locations whenever there is a need,” said McLeod. “This is a gift that is important to the community.”
As Scout Master, John O’Quinn works with six boys: Dillon Hudson, who is already an Eagle; Tommy O’Quinn and Isaac Zorn, who are Life Scouts working on Eagle projects; Landon Garvin, who is working on Life rank; and two Junior scouts, Benjamin Remley and Tanner Benton.
The boys all worked together to create a bat box and an Owl box. They also developed a bat box exhibit; it is a bat box cut in half to allow viewers to see what is typically inside of a bat box that houses and protects bats. The bat habitat is important for the ecosystem.
The Boy Scouts of America has seven ranks: Scout, Tenderfoot, Second Class, First Class, Star, Life and Eagle.
