Sending packages to soldiers carries Lunsford to Eagle rank
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After collecting hundreds of items ranging from drink mixes to toothpaste to cotton swabs, all benefiting military personnel stationed in Iraq for his Eagle Scout project, he ought to.
Admittedly a late starter on his project, which Scouts say is a lifetime goal achievable only after tremendous effort, Lunsford’s vision came together quickly.
Gathering items wasn’t so difficult in a place like Warren County, he said, but he soon learned his initial plans to mail the packages using his own means was going to be too expensive.
He learned he could send the items to Iraq via a military service organization located in Washington, D.C., and ensured they went to Warren County’s soldiers by providing a list of 700 names. He also donated around $400 he had collected from various civic organizations to the American Red Cross to be used for its future shipments overseas.
He started the project Feb. 27, started collecting items April 15 and completed the boxes May 12. Last week, while waiting for his project to come under review, he looked back on the amount of effort he put into it.
“If I add them up, it would be quite amazing,” he said, noting every ounce of energy had to be documented. “In three weeks, I collected everything. In total, I made 44 boxes.”
Lunsford said he decided to run with the idea after others touted its importance, including his father, Steve Lunsford, and his Scoutmaster, Kelly McVey.
“It’s a lot of paperwork, but once I got everything off, I was glad to know a lot of soldiers from Warren County were going to get items because a lot of them may not have families who care about them or be able to send packages over there,” he said.
“A lot of the families had talked to the Red Cross and said they had no money. And so I let a couple of people in and they would pick out stuff out of what I had so they could make care packages. I took care of their shipping.”
In total, he logged 37 hours of his own time and had more than 75 hours of help from people in the community.
The project was overwhelming, but rewarding. And the hard work appears to have paid off. McVey said Thursday Lunsford passed his local board of review and was waiting for a date to formally accept the rank of Eagle Scout.
McVey said the Eagle rank is not necessarily about the project, but about demonstrating leadership while facilitating community involvement. It is the culmination of years of work earning merit badges and other Scouting efforts.
“The Eagle rank is very hard to attain because many people give up,” McVey said, noting many Scouts become distracted by other events taking place in their lives and never go forward. “It’s a great honor.”
Lunsford can quickly attest to that.
“A lot of the guys say this is the greatest accomplishment that you’re ever going to achieve. I’ve never thought about it, but now that I’ve gotten this far, I believe it,” he said last week, before he knew his work was accepted.
“I’ve been in Scouting since I was in kindergarten and watched a lot of the guys come and go because it’s so hard for them to try to accomplish it. But I’ve been in this forever and I’m going to finish what I’ve started,” he added.