Eagle success

Keegan Brooks Courtesy of Peter Brooks

Alec Brooks Courtesy of Peter Brooks

Brothers Keegan and Alec Brooks of Boy Scouts of America Troop 800 of Raymond have achieved the rank of Eagle Scout. Since the inception of the Eagle Scout award in 1912, only 2.01% of eligible Scouts have earned Scouting’s highest honor. That percentage has been trending upward, but the award is still incredibly rare.

One of the final steps in achieving Eagle Scout is the opportunity for a Scout to demonstrate leadership while performing a project for the benefit of their community. Keegan built an 8-by-14-foot storage shed for the Raymond Recreation Association. The coaches of Raymond Rec Soccer will now have a universal place to put all the gear.

“It was rewarding to give back to a program I enjoyed when I was younger,” Keegan said.

Alec built an 8-by-8-foot cedar sandbox with benches on two sides and a 4-by-4-foot wheelchair accessible sand table for kids with disabilities at Raymond Elementary School. Alec wanted to give back to the school he attended. He was able to participate in a grand opening of the new playground for the school last fall.

Congratulations to Alec and Keegan for their meaningful achievement of Eagle.

Citizenship award to Mains

Noah Mains, the 2020 Jordan-Small Middle School recipient of the Secretary of State’s Eighth Grade Citizenship Award. Courtesy of Erika Greene

Jordan Middle School’s Noah Mains has been awarded the Secretary of State’s Eighth Grade Citizenship Award for 2020. The award is given to one outstanding eighth grader from each Maine school every year based on criteria that includes the student’s service to the community, leadership qualities and a good scholastic record. The selection process involves both educators and students. Jordan-Small Middle School students celebrated Mains with sentiments about his terrific ability to motivate others to be helpful, to always keep going and not give up. His coaches said he continually shows deep concern for his peer athletes, and his teachers commented that he maintains a positive attitude and always steps up to the plate when there is a problem to solve or a job that needs to be done. Congratulations to Noah for his positive impact on the Raymond community.

Lions scholarships awarded

Raymond Lions Club has awarded $1,000 scholarships for this academic year to Lindsey MacDonald and Riley Silvia, 2020 graduates of Windham High School. MacDonald will attend Keene State College in Keene, New Hampshire, in the fall with a double major in public health and safety and occupational health and applied science. Silvia will be attending Lasell University in Newton, Massachusetts, majoring in sports management.

BackPack program continues

The BackPack Program provides food for hungry children on the weekends and during school vacations throughout the school year. This summer, the town will continue this important program as local families are struggling more than ever due to the COVID-19 impact.

Pickup will be held from 1-1:30 p.m. Tuesdays at the Jordan Small Middle School cafeteria entrance.

Donations can be dropped off at any time over the summer at the Public Safety Building or at the Town Office. You can also consider a tax-deductible monetary donation or sponsoring a family with a weekly donation of $30. Checks should be made payable to the Town of Raymond and sent to the Town Office, Attn: BackPack Program, 401 Webbs Mills Road, Raymond, ME 04071. For more information, call 655-5411 or email Cathy Gosselin at cathy.gosselin@raymondmaine.org.

Story sets

Raymond Village Library offers Baby Bundles (ages 0-3) and Storybook Sets (ages 3-6) for its youngest patrons. Baby Bundles are sets of three board books and two index cards with a song or bouncy game and an activity to do together. Storybook Sets are sets of three picture books accompanied by a craft. These selections are focused on the alphabet. The first set of three books will be accompanied by a “Feed Me! Puppet” kit. The second comes with an ABC dinosaur to make. For more information check out Facebook, email or call the library. These board book sets can be requested for curbside pickup by email to rvldirector@gmail.com or by phone at 655-4283.

Alissa Messer can be contacted at alissamesser@gmail.com.