Lifelong Friends Earn Eagle Together

South Jordan - South Jordan residents Austin Storrs and Parker Davis have done a lot together in their short 15 years:  they attended preschool together, raced pinewood derby cars side-by-side, and have both played on the Bingham High boys volleyball team.  Now, just shy of their 16th birthdays in February, these close friends will be awarded the rank of Eagle together in the Boy Scouts of America.

Austin and Parker are both sophomores at Bingham High School.  They completed their Eagle rank requirements in the second half of 2015 and held a joint Court of Honor on Jan. 24 in the South Jordan Parkway Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  Their accomplishment stems from three years of adventure, hard work, fun and dedication to the Boy Scout program in Troop 1975.  

In satisfying the Eagle requirements, Parker has served as chaplain and Austin as co-captain.  Parker earned 25 merit badges, his favorite being wilderness survival, and Austin earned 26, with archery as his favorite.  Both boys have fond memories of their troop’s many campouts - among the most memorable a recent trip to Zion National Park where they hiked The Narrows, learned some local history and enjoyed a day of water sports.

Austin grew up playing basketball and currently plays volleyball but enjoys all sports. He has always worked hard in his life to get good grades and keep up with all of his classes, and he plans to further his education through graduating from college.  In his free time, Austin’s favorite things to do are hang out with friends, play Xbox and play sports.  Austin’s Eagle project consisted of working with the Jordan River Commission to beautify the northern section of the Jordan River Trail by planting roughly 200 desired plants. 

One part of the project was near an actual eagle’s nest, and Austin’s hope is that when the trees and shrubs mature, eagles will nest in them.  Austin involved both the boys and leaders from his troop and feels that the project was an overall success.  Austin most values his leadership experiences in scouts, as it was a good way for him to develop his natural leadership talents.

Parker also enjoys a breadth of sports and particularly excels in volleyball.  He, too, is a good student and plans on attending a university.  He lived in Ghana, West Africa, with his family during his fifth- and sixth-grade years and will always treasure that unique experience. He also enjoys Xbox, following professional soccer and spending time with friends.  

For his Eagle project, Parker hosted a safety fair for the cub scouts in his local unit and enlisted the help of his fellow boy scouts to man the various information booths.  The cub scouts in attendance learned about general first aid, shock, extreme weather safety, and wounds and insect/animal bites. This information allowed the cubs to pass off their first aid requirements.  Parker also collected stuffed animals to donate to the South Jordan fire and paramedics teams in the hopes of comforting children in traumatic situations.  These were warmly received at the South Jordan Fire Station on Redwood Road.  Parker feels that his scouting experience allowed him to develop great self-dependence as he worked through merit badges and other requirements.

Austin, Parker, and their parents, Ken and Ember Storrs and Troy and Jill Davis, express deep gratitude to all of their loyal leaders who have helped the boys along the way