Matthew C. Rexroad, Sylvan Zheng, and Adam D. Niemann were honored by Boy Scout Troop 40 for attaining the rank of Eagle Scout — scouting’s highest rank. The awards ceremony was held in December at High School South.
Matthew Rexroad began his Boy Scout experience in first grade as a Tiger Cub in Pack 40. He received his Arrow of Light and bridged into Troop 40 in 2005. He became a member of the Order of the Arrow, attended National Youth Leadership Training in 2009, and served as Central NJ Council 2010 Jamboree Troop 135 Scribe. He earned 30 merit badges and has received his Bronze Palm as an Eagle Scout.
A hiker and outdoorsman, Rexroad developed his project to improve hiking areas at Ron Rogers Arboretum and Millstone Preserve East. He installed trail markers at all the existing trails, cleaned up the trails, and built two new trails by the Millstone River with the help of 30 adult and youth volunteers.
A senior at High School North, Rexroad has been active in many instrumental groups, including the marching band, where he served as drum line captain and historian. He also plays in the Wind Ensemble, Percussion Ensemble, Philharmonic Orchestra, and Steel Drum Band. He recently performed in the pit orchestra for North’s production of “Peter Pan.” At North he is a member of the Science Club and the Spanish Honor Society.
Rexroad attended summer camps at NoBeBoSco and Rodney Scout Reservation, Sea Base High Adventure Coral Reef Sailing and Snorkeling program in the Florida Keys, and the 2010 National Scout Jamboree in Virginia. “Scouting has given me the opportunity to enjoy many outdoor experiences,” he says. “Hiking in New Mexico at Philmont Scout Camp and summiting the Tooth of Time at more than 9,000 feet is something I’ll never forget.”
Sylvan Zheng chose an Eagle Scout project that will protect Barred Owls, medium-sized gray-brown owls streaked with white, a threatened species in New Jersey. The project has the added benefit of controlling rodent and pest populations in the township. Zheng led a team of 23 volunteers to build eight boxes that serve as homes for the owls, and installed the boxes across various areas of West Windsor, including woods near Duck Pond and Zaitz Field. He also designed and created an informational poster to be displayed around the township.
A senior at High School South, Zheng is a captain of the school’s swim team. He also trains with his club team, the Princeton Tigers Aquatics Club.
Zheng plays viola in South’s Philharmonia orchestra and went on tour to Hawaii last November in honor of Pearl Harbor’s 70th anniversary. Last year, he was inducted into the National Honor Society. Zheng also enjoys composing music and maintaining a web comic.
Zheng began his career in scouting as Webelo in Pack 48, where he earned the Arrow of Light. After bridging to Troop 40 in 2005, he attained the Order of the Arrow and earned 30 merit badges. He attended summer camps NoBeBoSco and Rodney Scout Reservation, completed National Youth Leadership Training, had High Adventure experiences at Sea Base (2009) and Philmont (2011), and attended the 100th Anniversary of Scouting at national Scout Jamboree (2010).
“Scouting includes endless opportunities including camping, climbing rocks, making new friends, and learning leadership skills,” Zheng says. “It’s played a huge part in crafting who I am.”
Adam Niemann led a team of 25 adult and youth volunteers in an Eagle Scout project to build two wheelchair-accessible picnic tables at the Dutch Neck Presbyterian Church, the troop’s home for many years. Niemann’s team collected scrap wood from the demolition for re-use as firewood, and removed and recycled all of the old metal hardware. The team also installed weed mats and fresh gravel to prevent the growth of new weeds and installed new wooden boundary markers around the tables.
Niemann, who began his scouting career as a Boy Scout in Camarillo, California in 2005, joined Troop 40 when his family moved to New Jersey in 2007. Niemann earned 33 merit badges.
A June, 2011, graduate of High School North, Niemann is a freshman at the University of California at Berkeley, where he is vice-president of his dormitory, works part-time at Zellerbach Performance Hall, and co-founded the campus improvisational comedy group.
At North Niemann performed in the school’s spring musicals and the fall dramas, co-founded North’s chapter of the International Thespian Society, founded the Juggling Club, was active in the Improv Club, and was a show leader at 107.9 WWPH, the school district’s radio station. A national qualifier for two straight years in the National History Day competition, Niemann received a High School North PTSA Award, the Barbara Masonis Award, and a HSN Theater Department scholarship award.
“With the Scout Oath and Law as guides, and with the help of so many wise scoutmasters, I strive to uphold the values I learned through scouting by questioning my actions often to assure that they correspond with the morals in which I believe,” says Niemann.
