Eagle Scouts honored by Palatine village council

The Palatine council recognized eight young residents who attained the prestigious rank of Eagle Scout in the past year.

The rank is the highest for Boy Scouts, awarded to those who consistently perform to the best of their personal ability, exceeding expectations at every step, officials said. The rank is achieved by only 4% of all Scouts.

The Scouts recognized by the council were: Ryan Kurrie and Daniel Nass from Troop 188; Ian Cameron, Shravan Arun, Daniel Narey, Chris Buchalo and Harmon Bhasin from Troop 209; and Alex Cooper from Troop 335, all based in Palatine.

"This is one of my favorite meetings of the year," said Mayor Jim Schwantz, who praised the young men for their achievement.

Schwantz also thanked the Scouts' parents and Scoutmasters for their time and energy in creating "tomorrow's leaders."

"I know these individuals (the Scouts) do a lot of the heavy lifting, but it's with a ton of support," Schwantz said.

As part of requirements to earn the Eagle rank, Scouts must plan, develop and provide leadership to others in a service project helpful to a religious institution, school or community,

For example, Alex's project benefited Lake Zurich Middle School South, which Alex attended. The project consisted of renovating the school's courtyard by assembling four benches, weeding the area, adding mulch and building three decorative 7-foot sign posts.

"It made it a more inviting place for students to be and to learn," Alex said.

Ryan's project consisted of creating a reflection garden for St. Theresa Church and School of Palatine. The garden surrounds the St. Mary's statue so "students and parishioners can pray with a nice setting with flowers and a bench." He also built a composting bin so students can learn about environmental science.

Ian's project consisted of building a community garden for First United Methodist Church in Palatine with new features including two new garden bed boxes, installing a mail post for brochures and clearing land for larger vine fruits like squash and pumpkin, and more.

Daniel's project entailed building a 10-foot-by-12-foot storage shed for Christ Lutheran Church in Palatine.