2004 Bath Eagle Scouts

Evan Dontje, AJ Smith, Drew Charness and Steven Perry

Steven Perry began scouting as a Tiger Cub in Pack 267 at Bath Elementary School. As a member of Pack 267, Steven advanced through the ranks of Tiger Cub, Wolf, Bear, and Webelos, earning the Arrow of Light Award in the 5th grade. Steven crossed over to Boy Scout Troop 67 in the spring of 1998. Steven moved to Durand, but continued his scouting in Bath to maintain his friendships and camaraderie that he had found in his Scout Troop.

Along his journey from Scout to Eagle, Steven earned 22 merit badges. Steven spent four summers at Northwoods Reservation for summer camp. He earned his Polar Bear award twice during winter camping at Northwoods.

With his fellow scouts he backpacked the Porcupine Mountains, Grand Canyon, Pikes Peak and the Adirondacks. He biked to Cedar Point, a trip of over 200 miles. Most recently, he learned how to sail a 42 foot Ketch on Lake Huron from Rogers City to the Canadian border.

For his Eagle project, Steven tore down a structure at Heartwood school at Ingham Intermediate School District and rebuilt it so that there was more shade for the students at Heartwood. The scouts also planted perennials around the structure.

Currently, Steven is a junior at Mason High school. He would like to pursue higher education at Michigan Tech University and earn a degree in Engineering. Steven is the son of Melissa and Tom White of Mason, Michigan.

Andrew Smith (AJ) began scouting in Pack 267 in 3rd grade. AJ went through the ranks of Bear and Webelos and earned the Arrow of Light Award in the 5th grade. AJ crossed over to Boy Scout Troop 67 in May, 1998.

Along his journey from Scout to eagle, AJ earned 23 merit badges. He spent every summer at Northwoods Reservation for summer camp and completed one week of Junior Leading Training in 2003. In 2004, he was staff at the Junior Leading Training. He reiced his Polar Bear award during winter camping at Northwoods.

He earned the Order of the Arrow in 2002.

AJ biked to Cedar Point, a trip of over 200 miles. He also backpacked the Grand Canyon, Pikes Peak and the Adirondacks.

For his Eagle project, AJ built bird houses and marked trails in Robson Road Park in Bath. He also laid down wood chips on the trails.

AJ is currently a junior at Bath High School. He plans to go into the service when he graduates. AJ is the son of Mike and LuAnn (deceased) Smith of East Lansing, Michigan.

Evan Dontje began scouting as a Tiger Cub in Pack 267 at Bath Elementary School. As a member of Pack 267, Evan advanced through the ranks of Wolf, Bear, and Webelos, earning the Arrow of Light Award in the 5th grade. Evan crossed over to Boy Scout Troop 67 in the spring of 1998.

Along his journey from Scout to Eagle, Evan earned 21 merit badges. Evan spent several summers with the troop at Northwoods enjoying many of the activities there, and earned his Polar Bear award during winter camping at Northwoods.

Evan has enjoyed many Boy Scout activities with Troop 67. One of the highlights for him was a biking trip to Cedar Point, this trip included overnight camping and biking almost 200 miles within 5 days.

For his Eagle project, Evan worked with the local American Red Cross and the Bath Volunteer Fire Organization to have an Emergency Preparedness Day for the Bath community. The American Red Cross was present to do a community blood drive, and he arranged for the American Red Cross Emergency Response Vehicle to be on site at the event and provide education. He also facilitated a collection for the American Red Cross Food Bank and their Disaster Relief fund.

Currently, Evan is a junior at Bath High school. He would like to pursue higher education at Michigan State University or University of Michigan with a focus on technology. Evan is the son of Mark and Kathy Dontje of DeWitt, Michigan.

Drew Charness started Cub Scouts in Bath Troop 267 in elementary school and advanced through the ranks.  Drew crossed over into the Boy Scout Troop 67 in 1998.  Once Drew crossed over into the Boy Scouts he began to canoe, backpack, and bicycle. 
 
One of the best trips that Drew remembers was a weekend trip canoeing the Sturgeon River.  Drew and a couple of other scouts overshot the camping sites and continued down the river until it started to get dark.  They pulled off the river at dusk and got ready to set up camp.  They waited for a couple of hours, but no one showed up.  They started to get worried and went up to a house along the river and asked them where the nearest campground was.  They said it was back up the road a few miles.  They then had to ask them for a ride back to the campground as they explained to them that they were Boy Scouts and had overshot the campground. 
 
Drew built a pavilion for his Eagle Project at the Bath Township Soccer Complex for barbeques or to use as a shelter. 
 
He is currently a junior at Bath High School and plans to go to college at a major university.  He plans to major in either business/managing, law, or engineering.
Drew is the son of Larry and Mimi Charness of East Lansing, Michigan.