An Eagle Scout in Missouri has earned every possible merit badge — 140 of them : NPR

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Young people involved in Scouting earn badges for activities like fishing, music and even nuclear science. It takes 21 merit badges to become an Eagle Scout. This is the first rank in Scouting. And as St. Louis Public Radio’s Lacretia Wimbley reports, a Missouri Eagle Scout achieved that goal and went on to collect every other badge on offer.

LACRETIA WIMBLEY, BYLINE: Scouting America’s Court of Honor ceremony officially recognizes scouts for their accomplishments. And on this day it takes place for 18-year-old John Hayes. It starts with a color guard. Scouts from the Great Rivers Council of Missouri, dressed in tan and green uniforms, march waving the flags of the United States and the city of Lake Ozark.

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UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: Color guard. Attention. Walk forward.

WIMBLEY: This is followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. And emcee John Detzel talks about the importance of the Scout Law while reading from an old Scout manual.

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JOHN DETZEL: Here are my favorites. (Reading) A scout is trustworthy.

WIMBLEY: As he continues to recite the law, a beaming Hayes, wearing a sash full of regalia, stands nearby. Later, he talks about his journey to the merit badge.

JOHN HAYES: It all started in Cub Scouts. I didn’t really have the passion to get all the merit badges because I wasn’t interested in merit badges in Boy Scouts. But I had an amazing den leader, Dave Weaver. He ignited my passion for Scouting in a powerful way. I started loving every moment of it.

WIMBLEY: It didn’t take long for Hayes, then an 11-year-old new member of Troop 21, to set an ambitious goal.

J HAYES: I got my first merit badge. I thought it was pretty cool.

WIMBLEY: This one was for space exploration.

J HAYES: I got my second merit badge. I was like, I want to do every one of these.

WIMBLEY: And it was a big dream. The number of merit badges increased over the years, from just 14 in the early 1900s, when scouting began, to more than 100 by the time Hayes began collecting them. Amanda Hayes says scouting gave her son the opportunity to travel the world and learn valuable life skills, like how to provide first aid. She also made a deal with him, as there may be fees for the badges. She told him that if he saved his money and paid for his own merit badges, she would take care of everything else.

AMANDA HAYES: And he did. He gets paid for every merit badge he gets. I said, I’ll cover the gas and my time. You cover all your merit badges.

WIMBLEY: And of the 140, Hayes has a favorite.

J HAYES: Climbing was my favorite activity. At the Ozark Lake Scout Reservation, I used the climbing ridge seven to ten times. Somewhere out there, what… kept coming back to do it. I loved it so much.

WIMBLEY: And the last badge he got was the bugle badge. Great Rivers Council Scout Director John Fabsits says earning the Merits takes a lot of time and energy, but it’s worth it.

JOHN FABSITS: So it’s an introduction, again, to these potential careers, these hobbies, these things that interest a child about what they want to do with the rest of their life.

WIMBLEY: And Hayes has already made a decision about his career. He has a student pilot’s license and started flying planes a year ago. He wants to become a professional pilot, just like his grandfather, who is an aviation merit badge advisor, and he has some advice for young scouts.

J HAYES: Keep pushing yourself, try harder and harder. It’s okay to fail, of course. This is important for scouts, because when you fail, you learn. And be a good person. I’m sad it’s all over, but I mean, it’s good to have it done.

WIMBLEY: John Hayes now joins a special group of just over 600 scouts who have earned as many merit badges as possible.

For NPR News, I’m Lacretia Wimbley in Lake Ozark, Missouri.

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