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A clear sky. Low 56F. Winds light and variable..
A clear sky. Low 56F. Winds light and variable.
Boy Scout Shane Finch has fought back from COVID, and is ready to start on his project to earn his Eagle Scout badge by building a pavilion at his school, Covenant Christian High School.
Shane Finch was able to continue his fundraising efforts by selling these beef sticks through the pandemic.
Boy Scout Shane Finch has fought back from COVID, and is ready to start on his project to earn his Eagle Scout badge by building a pavilion at his school, Covenant Christian High School.
Shane Finch was able to continue his fundraising efforts by selling these beef sticks through the pandemic.
DEMOTTE — Boy Scout Shane Finch began planning for his Eagle Scout badge when he was in eighth grade. He is now ready to enter his senior year of high school and after being waylaid by COVID-19, he is closer to fulfilling that requirement, which he has to do before his 18th birthday in March. He is a member of Troop 167, which meets at First Church.
Finch began preparing for his project with the expectation he would accomplish it by his 15th birthday. His plans are to build a 20’ X 30’ pavilion at his high school, Covenant Christian High School in DeMotte. “I wanted to do something nice and give back to my school,” he said, “Something that would benefit the school the most.”
He began his fundraising efforts in 2019, with a car wash, and spaghetti dinners. Shortly before everything came to a screeching halt in March 2020, he had planned a cookie sale. In October 2020, he caught the virus and it took its toll on him. He became a “long-hauler” with COVID causing lingering health problems, including extreme fatigue and listlessness. He lost 50 lbs., and his ability to play sports and even attend school. He had to leave Covenant Christian and take on home schooling.
During his health ordeal, he continued to raise funds for his pavilion project by selling beef sticks made for the Boy Scout organization and made in a variety of flavors. These beef sticks were placed in local participating businesses and sold at his high school for $1 each. This allowed him to have a minimum of contact with the public while also assisting in the fundraising.
Now, as his health has improved and he has returned to the classroom and even sports, he is ready to take on the building project. The design for the pavilion was done with help from Dustin Wagner of Wagner Lumber in Rensselaer, which will also provide the materials for the build at a discount. The pavilion will have a metal roof, which was the topic of discussion on Tuesday at Covenant Christian High School, where Finch, his brother Daniel, mother Valerie and Principal Rick DeFries met to discuss location and preparations for the construction.
The pavilion will be located near the athletic fields behind the school building. DeFries said they want the pavilion to be most beneficial to the teams, including soccer, baseball and softball. They also want it to be a permanent location.
“It will be a great thing for years to come,” DeFries said. “It’ll be a place for classes to go outside and enjoy the weather, for athletics, open houses and great for the community.”
Valerie Finch said, “It’ll be something to be proud of.”
On July 15, the final fundraiser will be a golf outing at Curtis Creek Country Club in Rensselaer. Sharon Bailey was instrumental in bringing the golf outing together, Valerie said. The beef sticks are still for sale as well, and Shane’s vision will soon come to fruition. After the golf outing, he will be ordering the materials to begin the construction. He said construction of the trusses would take about four weeks. A concrete slab will be poured for the pavilion and construction will follow.
He also plans to include picnic tables for the pavilion and is hoping to have electricity to light it up at night.
“I promised I would do it before COVID, and I didn’t want it to flop,” he said. Even through the fight to regain his health and stamina, while also keeping up with schoolwork, he never let the project go. Even though the project took longer than expected, it will be done and he will earn the Eagle Scout badge he has hoped for.
After graduation next spring, Shane Finch plans to take some time to recover and “catch up on life for a bit.” Then he plans to attend Grand Canyon University to become a federal park ranger. With the determination and perseverance he demonstrated throughout the pandemic, he shouldn’t have any problems reaching his future goals.
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