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Rishi Gopalasetty’s Eagle Project at Wagner Ranch

On September 24th, 2023, Rishi Gopalasetty led a group of scouts to the completion of his eagle project. The eagle project entailed building a bench for the late Mr. Steve Gentry, an Orinda Beekeeper as well as the founder of Wagner Ranch Nature reserve (the beneficiary). This project was very important to Wagner Ranch as Mr. Gentry was one of the founders and has had a huge impact on those involved with the nature reserve.   The bench has dimensions of 2×4 feet and is made of redwood as per the beneficiaries request. There was one group working on building the seat and the legs and another group working on the backrest.   First, the seat was made, then the legs were attached.                                             Then the scouts worked on the backrest. The backrest was especially hard because of the way it was designed. It was hard because they had to drill through the top piece of wood to screw the pieces of wood attached to the bottom.     Next, all they had to do was attach the two parts and polish the wood so it wouldn’t be rough and it would have a nice color.   Now all the students and people at Wagner Ranch will have something to remember Steve Gentry by, and I’m sure they will enjoy this bench for a very long time.  

Adarsh Danda’s Eagle Project at Coyote Creek

On 12/3/22 Adarsh Danda led a eagle project at Coyote Creek elementary school. His eagle project entailed making four 4’x8′ stages to enhance Coyote Creek’s performance arts department. On Day 1, Adarsh led his team and they marked and drilled all of the wood needed to make the stages. This was the part that took the most amount of time as there was a lot of wood that needed to be marked and drilled. They also had to make sure the measurements were accurate otherwise the stages wouldn’t turn out good.                                               On Day 2, Adarsh and his team finished up the drilling and started to paint. They painted the stages black. This stage also took a while because the stages are quite long and wide and it’s hard paint in the middle of the plank.                             On Day 3, Adarsh and the scouts went to Coyote Creek Elementary School to install the stages. Now Coyote Creek students get to use and enjoy these stages everyday, and I’m sure Coyote Creek students will enjoy them for many years to come.                                                        

Vaibhav Muthuraman’s Conservation Outing at Fertile GroundWorks

On November 21st Vaibhav Muthuraman led a group of scouts in a conservation outing at Fertile GroundWorks. Fertile GroundWorks is a non-profit organization that teaches people how to grow and harvest healthy food for them to eat. They also give fresh fruits and vegetables that they grew themselves to food pantries to help feed those in need. The goal of Vaibhav’s project was to dig 18-inch ditches to help them move water pipes under the ground. This made their process of moving water pipes much more efficient. This was a multi-week project and Vaibhav’s team was only there for three hours and dug six inches throughout the water pipeline area as this was extremely strenuous work, even with eight scouts there. But, at the end the team put all their energy and actually dug an 18-inch hole all by themselves. Vaibhav and his team got Fertile GroundWorks a really good head start on their project                                                         After working hard for three hours, Vaibhav’s team took a picture with the Fertile GroundWorks sign to commemorate their hard work. Vaibhav’s project shows that if you put hard work in you can actually achieve a lot. Hopefully Vaibhav and his team inspire you to give back to the community more.  

Aiden Mok’s conservation outing at Fertile Groundworks

On November 11th, Aiden Mok and a group of other scouts led a conservation outing at Fertile Groundworks. Fertile GroundWorks is a non-profit organization that encourages and teaches people how to grow and harvest healthy, nutritious food. They also give fresh fruits and vegetables grown by themselves to food pantries to help feed those in need. The goal of this project was to put a coat of paint on their rainwater pump shed. The primer was already applied so Aiden and his team had to put two more coats of paint onto the shed. Some scouts used rollers to paint on bigger areas while some scouts used paintbrushes for more finer details and places where the rollers couldn’t reach. After around three hours of hard work, the group took a picture with the Fertile GroundWorks sign to commemorate their achievement. Aiden’s project shows that giving back to the community can be fun and rewarding. Hopefully this can encourage others to give back as well.

Neel Manekar’s Conservation Project At Albany Bulb

On June 17th, Neel Manekar and a group of other scouts led a successful conservation project at the Albany Bulb, a former landfill on San Francisco Bay known for its outdoor art. The Bulb is a beautiful area near the bay home to 150 bird species, towering trees, and scenic walking trails.                 The main goal of the project was to protect the local environment by removing invasive mustard plants. Under the guidance of their organizer Mrs. Price, the scouts were provided with tools, and their tasks. Some scouts focused on pulling out the invasive plants while others watered the surrounding flora. After over an hour of hard work the group took a picture near the Albany sign to commemorate their work. This project showcased how we should strive to preserve the environment. By removing the invasive plants, they contributed to the protection of the Albany Bulb’s natural ecosystem. Their commitment will hopefully serve as an inspiration for others to participate in other conservation initiatives.

Neel Manekar’s Conservation Project For Friends of Five Creeks

On 5/21/23, Neel Manekar led other scouts to help volunteer at the East Bay.  In association with Friends of Five Creeks, an organization dedicated to maintaining the creeks of the East Bay, he and other scouts did their part to protect the local environment by pulling out invasive perennial pepper weeds which can spread rapidly if left unchecked. After arriving in Berkeley, Ms.Schwartz, the group’s organizer, demonstrated what the scouts would be doing and how they should use the gardening tools. For the next few hours the scouts diligently worked pulling out weeds and restoring the environment. Finally, as a well-deserved treat the scouts visited the Seabreeze Restaurant to celebrate their hard work. Neel’s project shows that giving back to the community can be rewarding and fun!

Isaak Tan’s Conservation Project at Forest Home Farms

Isaak Tan is an outdoor ethics guide for troop 888. He wanted to raise awareness about environmental issues and serve the community. So he led a conservation project where he and other scouts added news plants to the gardens of Forest Home Farms. He started by  San Ramon’s Recreation Leader to set up a project. Then he and a group of 4 other scouts headed to Forest Home Farm to begin the outing. Isaak began by assigning roles and distributing tools. Then the scouts dug holes and used compost to create high quality soil. After that they carefully planted the plants making sure they were evenly spaced out so the roots had room to grow. Finally they covered the plants with mulch to make sure the plants retained moisture. The impact of the project goes beyond just planting trees as Forest Home Farms is an important part of San Ramon’s history. The Farm represents over a century of residential development and the city is very grateful for Isaak’s work.

Pranav Nimmagadda’s Eagle Project At Wagner Ranch

Pranav’s Eagle Project, the Outdoor Classroom, was the construction and installation of seven benches at Wagner Ranch Nature Area, Orinda, CA The students of Wagner Ranch Elementary School desperately needed a brand new set of benches, as the old one had been in use for the past 40 years, and was severely rotten, falling apart, and too short in height. Pranav solved these problems with the installation of benches that would likely outlast the previous set, using higher quality wood, screws, structures, and stain coats. On Day One at Pranav’s house, scouts sanded wood, and drilled 10″ holes into the bottom of each bench leg in order for iron rods to connect the bench to the ground. This would allow each bench to stay put in the ground. After lunch, scouts applied linseed oil (a type of varnish) to the plank part of each bench, and also applied stain coats to the part of the bench legs that would be in contact with the ground to prevent wood decay. On Day Two at Wagner Ranch Nature Area, scouts began by clearing the bench site by removing the seven current benches, and then using rakes to clear the area of loose leaves. Next, one team worked on screwing two bench legs to the bench plank, while the other team set up the Outdoor Classroom Area such that the benches would be in an equal “7-sided circle” using the third bench leg. Lastly, they put it all together, accurately measuring the distance between screws using the pre made plan, and took some pictures. The students at Wagner Ranch will continue to enjoy the benches while learning about biology, Native American history, and ecology for decades from now.  

Scouting Experience

At Troop 888, we strive to provide a scouting experience filled with variety and diversity. We love scouts that are engaged in the scouting program and journey, not the end result, and we are looking for parents that are engaged with the Troop and help the scouts have a great scouting experience

Sponsoring Organization

The American Legion is the largest and oldest veteran organization in the world with over 3,000,000 members. The American Legion was chartered by Congress in 1919 as a patriotic veterans organization.

Focusing on service to veterans, servicemembers and communities, the Legion evolved from a group of war-weary veterans of World War I into one of the most influential nonprofit groups in the United States.

Over the years, the Legion has influenced considerable social change in America, won hundreds of benefits for veterans and produced many important programs for children and youth.

Where we meet

Troop 888 meets every Monday 7:00PM at Gale Ranch Middle School 6400 Main Branch Road San Ramon, Ca. 94582 in the Multi-Purpose Room where we plan outings, work on merit badges and work together toward the advancement of the young men in our troop.

Parent Meetings are held every two months on the 2nd Monday of the month at Gale Ranch Middle School Multi-Purpose Room