Antonio's Eagle Scout Project

Hello, my name is Antonio Taormina and I am currently a Life Scout (one rank away from Eagle Scout) in Boy Scouts of America Troop 33 in Tustin, CA. I have been in Boy Scouts since I was 6 years old and progressed through every rank. Achieving the final rank, Eagle Scout, has been a dream of mine from a very young age and this year I hope to finally achieve this goal.

To achieve the rank of Eagle Scout, one of the requirements is completing a community service project. The project I have chosen is to renovate Saint Jeanne de Lestonnac Middle School’s Holy Mother Mary statue. The statue is located outside on the grounds, in the heart of my former middle school, in Santa Ana, California. The seating area around the statue is falling apart and no longer denotes the respect the school community has towards the Holy Mother.

My timeline for this project is tight. As I will be attending the Summer Leadership Experience at the United States Military Academy in West Point, New York; Summer Seminar at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland; California Boys and Girls State in Sacramento, California; and Boy Scout summer camp at Camp Witsett in Kern County, California for all of June and the beginning of July, my Eagle Scout project will begin in mid-July and finish in mid-August.

This project will require intensive physical labor and planning which I will provide, but it also requires monetary resources. First, I must demolish the original seating area around statue which has become unstable and unsightly. The current brick pillars and existing hardscape will be removed and when the demolition is done, I will set in place two wooden planks to make the mold for the concrete. To give the concrete structural support and better strength, I will need to lay down gravel and a wire mesh in the concrete mold. Also, since I will be replacing the existing benches and pedestal, I will need to place the new benches and pedestal on top of the wire mesh so they will be set in place when the concrete dries. After mixing several bags of concrete I will lay the concrete into the mold and use a trowel to make it smooth. Finally, I will return to my project everyday and pour water onto the concrete so that it dries correctly. The final touch will be to place the Mother Mary statue atop the pedestal and my Eagle Scout Project will be done!

I sincerely appreciate any contribution you would consider making towards this endeavor.