Eagle Scouts Honored in Nichols

 An Eagle Scout Court of Honor was held on Saturday, April 22, at the First Presbyterian Church in Nichols to honor Eagle Scout John Engelbert of Troop 36 in Nichols and Eagle Scout Tyler Stoltzfus of Troop 38 in Owego.  

 Andy Silvanic, Committee Member of Troop 36, served as the Master of Ceremony. Jim Trout, Scoutmaster of Troop 36, and Terry Hills, Scoutmaster of Troop 38 welcomed guests. The colors were presented by Troop 36 and Troop 38.  Linda Breffle, pastor of the First Presbyterian Church in Nichols gave the invocation. 

 Kris and Joe Engelbert, both Eagle Scouts, presented their brother John with his Eagle Scout Award.  Phillip Stoltzfus, also an Eagle Scout, presented his brother Tyler with his Eagle Scout Award. Awards were presented to both boys by the Tioga County Legislature. There were refreshments following the ceremony in the church social hall.

John Engelbert
 John Engelbert, 16, is a junior at Tioga Central High School. John joined Nichols Cub Scout Pack 36 in first grade (1995) as a Tiger Cub. He progressed through the ranks of Cub Scouts and in May 2000 earned the Arrow of Light award and bridged into Nichols Boy Scout Troop 36. In May 2001, John earned the rank of First Class, followed by Star Scout in January 2002 and Life Scout in July 2002.

 For his Eagle Scout project, John worked with the Friends of the Cady Library and cleaned the attic of the library. Trash was hauled to the transfer station and the remaining items were inventoried and neatly arranged. The second part of his project involved working with the town historian and members of his troop to organize and inventory items that had been donated to the Town of Nichols for a future museum. For the third part of the project, John and members of his troop refinished a display case and got it ready to display a collection of Indian artifacts donated to the Town of Nichols by his great grandmother, Bernice Engelbert. The artifacts had been collected by his great grandfather, Richard Engelbert over many years on the Engelbert Farm. John worked with members of the Broome County Chapter of the NY State Archeological Society to properly display the artifacts.  

 While in Troop 36, John held the position of Patrol Leader. He has attended summer camp at Camp Barton five times. In 2001 and 2005, John attended the National Boy Scout Jamboree in Fort A.P. Hill, in Virginia.

 At Tioga Central, John is a member of the National Honor Society, Ski Club, Spanish Club, Library Club, Chess Club, ADSIP, SADD, Challenge Team, and the Varsity Soccer Team.  He was named to Who's Who Among American High School Students. John has played travel soccer for eight years, with the Candor Soccer Club and the Hiawatha Soccer Club. When not in school, he works on his family's dairy farm.  Following high school, John plans to attend a four-year college. John is the son of Kevin and Lisa Engelbert of Nichols.

Tyler H. Stoltfus 
 Tyler Stoltfus, 15,  is a sophomore at Tioga Central High School. He began his scouting career as a Tiger Cub in Nichols Cub Scout Pack 36, in September of 1996. As a Cub Scout he earned the Arrow of Light Award.  In February of 2001, Tyler joined Boy Scout Troop 38 in Owego. He earned Tenderfoot Rank by April 2001 and reached Second Class by August 2001. In March of 2002 he became a First Class Scout and in March of 2003 he reached the rank of Star. In October of 2003 he earned the rank of Life Scout.

 As a Cub Scout Tyler participated in many activities with Troop 38 such as; bicycling in Gettysburg, PA, traveling to Acadia National Park, Maine and Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. As a Boy Scout in Troop 38, Tyler enjoyed camping activities in the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon, Catskills, Adirondacks, West Virginia and Colorado. Tyler attended Camp Barton summer camp for four years.  In the summer of 2005, Tyler attended the National Boy Scout Jamboree in Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia.

 Tyler's Eagle Project consisted of building 12 wooden benches for the Kirby Park in Nichols. Tyler researched possible plans for benches.  After choosing a design, he made modifications to improve on the design. He then calculated the cost of building one bench, lumber, screws, bolts and sealer. His next step was to ask local businesses for a donation to cover the cost of a bench. Everyone he asked was more than happy to donate to his project. After procuring enough donations for 12 benches, Tyler called on fellow scouts to volunteer their time to help construct the benches.  After the benches were completed a plaque was placed on each bench with the name of the business who donated the materials. The benches were then delivered to the Kirby Park in Nichols.

 As a sophomore at Tioga, Tyler has participated in Chess Club and Track and is in Ski Club. He is a High Honor Roll student and has been named to Who's Who Among American High School Students. His favorite activity by far is soccer; he has been playing since he was 5 years old. He plays year round with the Hiawatha Soccer Club. He made the High School JV Team when he was in 8th grade and has been on the High School Varsity Soccer Team for 2 years.  Tyler is the son of Howard and Jayne Stoltzfus.