By Justin Carinci

RICKREALL -- When Aaron Butterfield started his Eagle Scout project in early July, he had no idea what he was getting into. How much paint does one use to cover something that had never been painted before?  After two weeks and 10 gallons of paint, Butterfield put the finishing touches on the playground equipment at the Polk County fairgrounds in Rickreall.

"Look at all this equipment," the Dallas 16-year-old said, eying the bold rainbow of fresh paint. "This has never been done in one time before."

Photo: Aaron Butterfield and company used a lot of paint to bring the playground equipment new life. (Photo by Daniel Hurst. Reprinted by permissionof the Polk County Itemizer-Observer )

Cast metal rocket swings sprung out from obscurity into patriotic red, white and blue.  A lonely horse, the sole survivor of a dozen rocking spring animals, received the Pokey treatment as Gumby's orange companion.  Ribbons of white paint now wind down primary-colored poles like candy-stick stripes.  The project comes as the last major hurdle for Butterfield in achieving the Boy Scouts' highest rank: Eagle Scout. Though he said such community service efforts require 100 hours, the Troop 259 scout estimates he put in around 300 hours planning and working. But Butterfield didn't toil alone. He had the help of friends from his church and scout troop. 

"It's been hard work but I had so many people come and volunteer, about 30 to 40" people."

Butterfield had a bigger task than just painting. He had to first power wash and sand down all the neglected structures and then apply coats of primer before getting artistic. 

"The equipment was chipped, rusty -- in pretty bad shape," he said.

Carefully touching up the eyes of double horse swings with a tiny brush, Butterfield reflected on some unexpected challenges. "The detail work has been torture," he said. "It's all oil paint, and it takes around two days for the coats to dry. Sometimes we cheat and only wait a day before adding another layer."

Butterfield, himself almost coated with paint, smiled at the thought of the freshened equipment serving its purpose: "I'm going to be here to see all the little kids play on it," he said eagerly.

Though the kids get all the fun, Butterfield carries away a sense of pride in his accomplishment. "The project taught me a lot about leadership," he said.  Gesturing toward a friend working on the swings, Butterfield joked: "I learned you can't let people slack off."

(OMED: A simple story about a fine young man who to earn his badge does someting good for his community.  When you compare this to school shootings, teenage drug dealers and all the rest, it becomes obvious just how misdirected are those who, even here in Oregon, maintain that the Boy Scouts should be banned from schools and defunded by organizations like the United Way.  Oregon Magazine recommends that we defund United Way and give the money to the organization that turns boys into fine, responsible, trustworthy, decent young men.)

Gay activists' crusade against Boy Scouts is backfiring
(dated link backup)

Find your local Boy Scout troop with this link and support them!
 

 (Article reprinted by permission of the Polk County Itemizer-Observer)