Where Eagles cared

When the Albemarle County triplets joined the Cub Scouts in the first grade and proudly donned the blue and gold uniforms, it was simply a fun thing to do.

Together the boys experienced the thrill and sense of accomplishment that came from learning how to do things, such as tie a bowline knot, start a fire with one match — and, later, no match at all. During camping trips they learned about the beauty of a night sky and how to drive in tent pegs so even a fierce wind couldn’t tug them loose.

After Philip, Tyler and Derek Carpenter “crossed over” to the Boy Scouts and became members of Troop 119, an evolution began to occur. Scouting continued to be great fun, but over time it grew into something much more than tall tales around campfires and wolfing down flame-blistered hot dogs at jamborees.

“The big transition I saw in the boys as they progressed in scouting was really a maturing transition,” said Rich Carpenter, father of the 18-year-old brothers. “You see them go from young kids who are kind of wild in the meetings, with the older kids trying to direct them in what to do.

“Then all of a sudden they step up and now they’re controlling the meetings and setting the agenda and helping to teach the younger Scouts. So they go through this maturing process right before your eyes, and it’s really quite a sight to see.

“And I think that’s when you get real proud, but also when you see the value of the Scouting experience.”

This afternoon at 2 p.m. the brothers will stand together as they receive the highest distinction in scouting. During a Court of Honor ceremony at Aldersgate United Methodist Church, Del. Rob Bell, R-Albemarle County, will award each of the brothers the rank of Eagle Scout.

Since the award was created in 1911, one year after the Boy Scouts of America was founded, only about 2 percent of the BSA membership has earned this coveted badge of excellence. The requirement bar always has been held intentionally high

to ensure that only the most worthy and dedicated recipients will earn the right to say throughout their lives, “I am an Eagle Scout.”

On a recent afternoon the brothers sat around their kitchen table and talked about their scouting experience. In addition to their accomplishments in scouting, each of them belong to various honor societies at Albemarle High School, where they are seniors.

“When we were young we were all super excited about being Cub Scouts, because we thought it was really fun,” said Derek, who is a varsity runner at AHS and also plays alto and tenor saxophone with the school’s marching band, wind ensemble and jazz band.

“Initially, we stayed in scouting because a lot of our friends were in it. Once they started dropping out, we started looking at why we were staying.

“It was then that we realized the beneficial aspects of it that we could use in later life. One of the most important things you learn on the way to getting Eagle Scout is leadership and all that goes into that.”

In scouting, merit badges symbolize steps of knowledge. Currently there are 121 merit badges awarded to scouts who have successfully met requirements in skills ranging from camping and cooking to first aid and swimming.

To achieve the rank of Eagle Scout one must earn 21 merit badges, 12 of which are Eagle specific. Listed among the 12 are citizenship in the community, nation and world, communications, environmental science, personal management and personal fitness.

Perhaps the most difficult hurdle on the way to earning Eagle Scout is the leadership project. This involves identifying a project that will benefit the community, and then doing all that’s required to make it happen, including procuring the necessary funding.

“What I did for my project was build a picnic table area at Darden Towe Park,” said Tyler, who has been a standout varsity wrestler and team captain at AHS, as well as a percussionist for its marching band and wind ensemble. “I built two picnic tables and benches near the waterfront in an area that had been overgrown.

“Now it’s cleared and can be easily maintained. We went by there the other day and it was still looking good. Both tables are still sturdy and looked like people have been using them a lot, which made me happy.

“A big part of the project was contacting and working with city and county officials, because they were the ones who helped me pay for it and also plan it. I learned a lot about how many people you have to go through, and all the details necessary to do something like this.”

When Philip was thinking about what to do for his leadership project, he thought of his first alma mater, Woodbrook Elementary School. It was there that he and his brothers started their formal education as well as their scouting experience.

“I wanted to do something to help the school that had helped us early on,” said Philip, who plays French horn in his school’s marching band and wind ensemble and has spent several weeks in Australia as part of the People to People Student Ambassador Program.

“So I decided to fix up the courtyard they have there. I built a stone path through the courtyard from the library to the entrance on the far side. I also built two wooden benches for the students and teachers to use.

“One of the things I learned is that stones aren’t cheap and getting them under budget was probably the hardest thing I had to do. I was fortunate to meet Janelle Catlett, who works at Luck Stone, and she helped us get a discount on the stone.”

The enhancement project was funded by the school’s Parent-Teacher Organization. Philip enlisted the help of William Sterrett, principal of Woodbrook Elementary School, who interceded on his behalf with the PTO to secure funding.

“Phil’s project helped beautify our Learning Garden, which was dedicated to Mary Underwood, who worked here for 30 years,” Sterrett said. “He really put the icing on the cake for that wonderful dedication.

“He did a phenomenal job. He put a lot of thought and planning into the project and was very organized and an excellent communicator. Having one of our former students come back to our community and orchestrate a wonderful work like this speaks extraordinary volumes for him and his generation.”

All three of the brothers have been members of the Forest Lakes Swim Team for the past 11 years. Derek decided to focus his project on benefiting the swim team.

“I really felt I needed to do something to help the swim team, because I’ve had such a great time with them,” said Derek, who spent several weeks in China as a People to People student ambassador.

“So I thought I would help them out by building four benches, a rope fence and lane signs. It was a great learning experience to be able to do a project like that mainly by myself.”

Each of the siblings has earned 27 merit badges that are now affixed to their sashes. Chris Parks was their first Scoutmaster and has helped teach them many of the skills they’ve learned.

Parks, a former Army Ranger and currently a senior inspector with the U.S. Marshals Service, will serve as the master of ceremonies at today’s event. He said the two qualities he saw in each of the young men that most readily come to mind are patience and leadership.

“Each of the boys have served as senior patrol leaders,” said Parks, who lives in Louisa County. “That’s a testament not only to their leadership abilities, but also the confidence the other Scouts gave them by electing them to that position.

“It’s the highest Scout-held leadership position. And it’s a tremendous strain on them, too, because we try to have a Scout-led troop, where the senior patrol leader and his patrol leader council act as the leadership, and the adult leaders are more or less guides to help the program run.

“It can be very demanding on the Scouts, because they’re put in a leadership position over their own peers and even older Scouts. So it tested their mettle to say the very least, and each of them have done it in grand fashion.”

Being triplets was a motivational factor for the brothers. Although they relished competing with one another, they also were quick to offer each other a helping hand.

“There was always the competition between who was going to be patrol leader and who was going to be assistant,” Tyler said with a smile as his brothers nodded their heads in agreement. “And who was going to get the next merit badge first.

“We’ve been doing the same merit badges, so if I didn’t understand how to do a certain part of something, I could ask one of them for help. But a lot of this is learning how to be a better person and being a good example for everybody else.

“It also teaches you what kind of leader you should be. Some leaders can be out there and be in total control, but not be good leaders. Scouting teaches you the different parts that goes into making a good leader.

“A good leader is someone you can depend on. People will follow a good leader not because they’re told to, but because they want to.”

Jeff Hunt is the Scout master of Troop 119. Like Parks, he has been active in the troop since it was founded in 1999.

“I first met the brothers at their crossover to Boy Scouts when they were 11,” said Hunt, who is proud of the fact that the relatively young troop has now produced 13 Eagle Scouts. “I’ve watched them grow from being a little wild to being strong and confident young men.

“Each of them took on leadership roles, and although they’re each very different, they were all extremely good leaders. I’m really happy they all qualified for Eagle Scout, and I couldn’t be prouder of them.”

One of the proudest people in America this afternoon will be the brothers’ mother, Libby Carpenter.

“I’m very proud of them for having hung in there,” Libby Carpenter said. “They figured out how to manage their time, so they could participate in band, in their sports and all their other activities and still keep their grades up and still be Eagle Scouts at the end.

“It’s a very proud moment for me as a mom to have seen them manage to get that all done and do it so well.”

The first Eagle Scout was Arthur Rose Eldred, a member of Troop 1 in Oceanside, N.Y. He received word that he had achieved the honor on Aug. 21, 1912.

Today the Carpenter brothers will join the elite file of scouts who have followed Eldred onto the most exulted pinnacle of scouting. Before them have gone men such as President Gerald Ford, journalist Walter Cronkite and astronaut Neil Armstrong.

When Philip was asked what the honor will mean to him he spoke for his brothers as well.

“It’s a point of pride, but it also gives you a feeling that you succeeded at something special,” said Philip, who led his brothers into the world. “It’s a completion of our scouting journey.

“It’s that final accomplishment that puts us in the top 2 percent of Scouts. Getting there takes a long time and a lot of work, so you have to have a drive to get it done.

“We wanted to be the best, and as far as scouting goes Eagle Scout is the best.”

The Court of Honor ceremony will take place 2 p.m. today at Aldersgate United Methodist Church at 1500 E. Rio Road.