MADISON – When Alec Waldon decided to work for his Eagle Scout rank, he returned to his elementary alma mater to improve furnishings for outdoor classrooms.

“My service project was to provide Horizon Elementary School with benches for outdoor learning,” Waldon said. “We ended up building 10 benches for the students and two benches for the teachers. This project was personal to me as I once attended Horizon from grades K-6.”

“As for project steps, I began as you do with any project: brainstorming and planning process. Next, my father and I built prototype benches for the school to check out. After getting the Scout Council’s advice and approval, I got materials needed to build benches and scheduled a workday,” Waldon said.

“Planning, by far, took up the most time. A properly planned project is what separates a good workday from a bad one,” Waldon said. His planning ran from mid-March to mid-June.

In contrast, gathering materials only required a few hours. Waldon recruited help from fellow Boy Scouts in Troop 351, and thanks to that help, his project workday lasted only 2.5 hours.

Lumber was the primary need for the project. He also used screws, sandpaper and drills during construction.

“The benches will allow for an outdoor learning environment, especially important as of now with COVID-19 going around, where teachers find themselves taking their students outside more often to keep learning safe,” Waldon said.

“The benches are great. We’re all looking forward to using them,” Beth Bero said. Bero works as Horizon Gifted Specialist and Outdoor Classroom Coordinator.

In Troop 351 at Asbury Church, Scoutmaster is David Cybuck with help from numerous assistant leaders. “Special thanks to Sam Karahalis, Michael Edgemon, Cain Cybuck, Levi Cybuck, Owen Lang and Elliot Davison for all coming to help out,” Waldon said.

On joining Boy Scouts, Waldon set the Eagle rank as his goal. “To me, the motivation comes from wanting to finish what I have started. It’s important to me. When people hear ‘Eagle Scout,’ they think of a hard-working young man with skills ready to take on anything in life. That’s the type of person I want to be.”

A senior at Bob Jones High School, Waldon is a member of the Patriots Competition Marching Band and Wind Ensemble. He play alto saxophone and bassoon. He so participates in Honor Society.

His hobbies include hiking, swimming, biking and playing video games.

Currently, Waldon is researching and applying to different colleges. “University of Alabama in Huntsville is my top choice, while Mississippi State and Auburn are not too far behind,” he said. Waldon plans to major in aerospace engineering.

His parents are James and Beth Waldon. James works as an aerospace engineer on Redstone Arsenal. Beth works as a preschool teacher at CrossPointe Church.