Meet Parishioner Adam Liesen: Working Towards the Rank of Eagle Scout & Serving a Need in Our Parish

If you’ve recently visited the backyard of the St. Francis rectory, you may have noticed a change. Our statue of St. Francis was placed in a different location atop a new pillar. We may thank two people in particular for this effort — Fr. Arisman and parishioner Adam Liesen.

“The physical project is complete,” Adam says. “I also planted some shrubbery around the pillar and touched up the paint on the statue a bit to make it look nice.”

Fr. Arisman requested the project to commemorate the 160 years of the Franciscans at St. Francis. Adam spearheaded the project as part of his efforts to attain Eagle Scout rank after many years with the Boy Scouts. The project will go through an approval process and, if it passes, Adam will be rewarded with the esteemed rank of Eagle Scout.

“It’s a huge accomplishment to get done,” Adam says. “There are years of work you need to do to get to this point. Climbing the ranks takes a while and it’s not easy. Along the way, you grow and mature. By the time you get to Eagle Scout, you look back on how you were when you first came, you’ll be in disbelief how different you are.”

An Eagle Scout project is essentially the final component of a scout’s journey through the ranks — the highest honor in the Boy Scouts of America. Not every scout will ultimately reach Eagle Scout, so it is no small feat.

“To earn the rank of Eagle requires hard work and dedication,” says John Hamann, Adam’s scoutmaster. “A fraction of the scouts ever make it to Eagle.”

An Eagle Scout project must benefit the community and involve an element of leadership for the individual completing it.

“It’s quite in-depth,” John says. “There’s a local council of volunteers that decides whether these projects are accepted — a lot are not accepted and the kids have to go back to the drawing board. It’s quite the process.”

While Adam spearheaded the project, he had help from some of his fellow scouts. He also recruited the companies that would do more of the heavy-lifting components. For Adam, seeing the whole thing come together was truly a highlight.

“Through the summer when I was waiting for construction, I remember every week after church, I’d go back and see how far they got on it, see the pillar built piece by piece,” he says.

Adam started in Troop 22 of the Scouting program when he was in first grade. Although initially reluctant, Adam has grown to appreciate the opportunities he has had to take responsibility and learn about being a leader.

“It has really helped me communicate with people my age, learn to lead and guide others younger than me,” he says.

If you are interested in learning more about the Boy Scouts of America, or to join Troup 22, please visit www.scouting22.com.