RIVER VALE, N.J.—Boy Scout Troop 335 has named two new Eagle Scouts: Eric Welter and Thijs van Veen, both juniors at Pascack Valley High School and members of the National Honor Society.
To earn Scouting’s highest rank, each Scout led a service project that made a lasting impact on the local community. They knocked it out of the park—earning applause, cheers, and the deep satisfaction of a job well done at their Eagle Court of Honor, held May 17 at River Vale Community Church.
Eric Welter
Eric took on a project to enhance Westvale Dog Park, located on the border of River Vale and Westwood. He led the construction of a new agility course to give dogs—and their owners—a more enriching outdoor experience.
“Even before its completion,” he said, “I saw people using the course with their dogs and witnessed how much joy it brought them.”
Looking back on his time in Scouting, Eric singled out one experience in particular:
“The most physically challenging thing I have done in Boy Scouts was when I went to Floodwood. For a week we were sleeping in different spots every night, and during the day we would have to do portages, where we shouldered canoes and backpacks across miles, sometimes even in mud that went up to our knees.
And while that was certainly the most physically demanding experience I have had as a Scout, it is also one of my proudest moments. Moreover, it introduced me to the concept of type 2 fun, when something is not fun in the moment but you think fondly of it afterwards.”
Eric plans to study secondary education and hopes to become a history teacher.
Thijs van Veen
Thijs’s project focused on Safety Town Camp, a hands-on summer program in River Vale that teaches kids real-world safety skills. Campers ride tricycles through a miniature model of town. Thijs led a team of volunteers to redesign and repair the small-scale buildings, which had fallen into disrepair.
“When I heard that the old buildings were in need of repair,” he said, “I jumped at the opportunity to help.”
His advice to younger Scouts—and to his younger self—came from deep experience:
“If there was one thing I could tell myself as a kid, it would be this: Take your time. Don’t make the ending your goal. Do everything in Scouting that you can.
Go to all the meetings, go on all the camping trips, all the hiking, go to summer camp every year. Because the experiences that you have there are the point of Scouting.”
Thijs plans to pursue biomedical engineering and a career in healthcare.