Student project promotes school pride

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Logan Gieske posing next to his eagle scout project.

Michael Totosz, Sports Editor

Now displayed in the main entrance is senior Logan Gieseke’s Eagle Scout project which is the Plainfield Central “P” logo. 

  “I did the block P because I like what it represents,” Gieske said. “I wanted everyone to be connected by the statue.” 

  The location of the statue may help with how it is able to connect with people. Being the first thing that people see when they walk through the main doors, the people that see it are reminded of the community they just entered.  

  “Mr. Ambrose loved the project but he wanted it to be indoors so it could be preserved so I thank him a lot for that,” Gieseke said. 

  “I really liked the idea of giving back and doing something artistic with care and admiration for the school,” Vice Principal, Matt Ambrose said. “I think it is great and turned out ten times better than I ever thought it would and it does a great job displaying leadership and artistic qualities of Logan”. 

  The entire project took about 3 and a half to 4 months, but about three-fourths of the actual project was planning.  

  Covid had some effect on the creation of the project which caused the project to take a little bit longer than it probably should have. 

  “Typically an Eagle Scout has help from the whole troop with everyone pitching in,” Scout Master Michael Wade said. “Due to covid and scheduling issues, only a couple of scouts were able to help Logan”. 

  Since being placed in the front of the building, there has been a general acceptance of the statue and it seems to be liked by the students. 

  “Everyone is telling me how much they like it and I see it on Snapchat stories with the ‘Pushin P’ song with it so I’m hoping it is a hit,” Gieseke said. 

  However, it is not just students that have expressed their acceptance of the project. Staff members have also made themselves vocal about the project. 

  “Every staff member that I have talked to loves it because it is the first thing everyone sees walking in first thing,” Ambrose said. 

 Cub Scouts is a program that young boys are able to join when they are in Kindergarten. Cub scouts help these boys develop skills such as leadership, character, and personal fitness. After 5th grade, the program then turns into boy scouts where leadership skills become more prevalent. At the end of boy scouts, in order to become an Eagle Scout, they must complete a project.  

  “I joined Cub Scouts in first grade and Boy Scouts in sixth grade,” senior Logan Gieseke said. 

  The leadership skills that Logan has learned and gotten a better understanding of over his time as a scout are all supposed to be on display during the creation of his project because the Eagle project is a sort of “graduation” from the scouting program.  

  “The Eagle Project is the culmination of the Scouting program requirements,”  Wade said. “ Scouts can pick a project that interests them from putting in a garden, creating something, or whatever interests them and it gets approval that it meets all of the requirements, and once approved, the Scout serves as a project manager”. 

  Michael Wade has been a scout leader since he himself became an eagle scout in 2011. He has served in many different positions but has been a scoutmaster for the past few months. 

  Upon completion of the project, Gieseke has become an Eagle Scout which is also a way to say that he has graduated from the boy scouts program. With such a title, Gieseke assumes new leadership amongst his peers and his community. 

  “I have an extra honor in my pocket that will help me get through life because I learned skills that school will not teach me,” Gieseke said. “I feel I have an extra edge over the regular school guy now.”