A New Project With An Old Twist

Jake Gery appreciates the historic value of a unique site in his hometown.

To help enhance the monument, he volunteered to employ a centuries-old method that will yield a new connection to the past.

Jake, 16, a Boy Scout in Troop 129, plans to use colonial era blueprints to build benches for Pottstown's Pottsgrove Manor.

The project will help him earn the Boy Scouts' Eagle Scout Award. 

The Eagle is the highest rank a Boy Scout can achieve, according to the Boy Scouts of America's website. 

Jake said he chose the project because he grew up near Pottsgrove Manor.

"I've lived here forever," said Jake, a high school sophomore.

He plans to buy lumber such as maple or hickory to construct roughly six to 10 portable benches for the manor. 

To raise money for the estimated $800 project, Jake led a crew of fellow Boy Scouts and sold refreshments at the Manor's recent May Fair event.

"This is the first fundraiser," Jake said. 

A lot of work and time goes into earning an Eagle Award, but the honor that comes with the accomplishment lasts forever, he said.

"It's a lifetime thing," Jake said. 

Klaus Konarkowski, 15, also a Boy Scout in Troop 129, agrees.

"It's helping people," he said of the ultimate reward that comes with earning an Eagle. "It's an achievement." 

Editor's note: Check Pottstown.patch.com for updates on the status of Jake's colonial bench building project.