Local Boy Scout Troop 49 Making a Difference in the Community and Lives of its Members

The foundation for the person a child will become begins early in life.

Beyond the profound influence of family, Boy Scout Troop 49, the Pathfinders, established in 1960, has been building character, confidence and skill in local boys (and now potentially girls) for the past 62 years.

Long-time Oakland resident and Troop Committee Chair Tendai Richards says the Boy Scout experience offers lessons and skills that last a lifetime.

“Boy Scouts teaches our Scouts to be prepared,” he notes. “At a very young age these boys are imbued with the confidence that they can find a solution to any situation that comes their way.”

Troop 49 boasts impressive milestones, among them the number of members who have become Eagle Scouts, Scouting's highest rank.

“While the worldwide average of Scouts who attain the rank of Eagle Scout hovers near 4% of all Scouts who participate in Boy Scouts, Troop 49's percentage over the last decade is closer to 70%,” Richards says.

Richards, the father of three and a practicing attorney, was a Boy Scout himself and has been active with the troop for the past 15 years.

“I was Scout Leader for my sons Matthew and Anthony and have forged meaningful relationships with close to a hundred other Scouts over the last decade and a half who dedicated themselves to Troop 49,” he says.

Today, with his children—two sons and a daughter—now adults, Richards has risen from Troop Leader to Troop Committee Chair.  In this role he oversees the running of the entire troop. He is engaged in all the steps Scouts take on the path to earning the rank of Eagle Scout and all that achievement implies.

The troop has 44 members who come from Oakland and surrounding towns, including Ramsey, Wyckoff and Mahwah, and meet at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Oakland weekly.

“The troop truly has no borders,” Richards says.

“Locally, our Scouts have had projects approved by the Mayor and Council in Ponds Cemetery, have built an entire park in downtown Oakland,” Richards adds.  “They’ve done work at Oakland’s library, the recreation field, at Great Oak Park, the Dog Park, the Ramapo Reservation and local campsites and trails.”

Troop 49 projects are found in various places outside of Oakland, as well. They built an entire corral at the Bergen County Horse Rescue in Mahwah, projects at several Jewish temples, the Audubon Park in Franklin Lakes and in Newark schools, to name a few. 

“During Hurricane Irene when a dam burst on the Ramapo River and houses were knocked off their foundations, Scouts from Troop 49 who were trained in emergency preparedness pulled sheds back onto their foundations, cleared property, removed downed trees, disseminated water and made sure local residents were safe,” Richards notes proudly.  “Troop 49 Scouts are also on call with the Oakland Senior Center to help dig out Oakland seniors after major snow storms.”

We visited an Eagle project underway in the Danny D’Elia Building involving a complete renovation of the interior undertaken by Eagle Scout candidate Robert Alanakyan and his crew of Scouts and volunteer adults.  Richards stood by in his role of Eagle Coach. The energy to complete the job and the eagerness with which it was being undertaken was palpable. The Scouts were having a great time, while at the same time working hard but together as a team.

The completed project is a big improvement and will function to serve the folks who attend events at the recreation field, local organizations who meet there regularly, like the Oakland Recreation Commission, the Oakland Fathers Club and Mothers Club, local teams and young children who attend Oakland summer camp.

“Even during the current pandemic, the Scouts are continuing their projects.  They are members of a strong, vibrant community with incredible support from their Scout leaders and their parents,” says Richards.

The path to becoming an Eagle Scout is arduous.  Besides having to earn 21 merit badges (including 13 Eagle-required badges), Scouts hold several positions of responsibility within the troop, perform numerous hours of community service and have to demonstrate leadership by planning and completing an Eagle project that benefits his community. 

A candidate must demonstrate leadership, calculate what his team will need to complete the project and prepare proposal papers, which are sent to the Eagle Coach for review and approval.  Once approved, the Scout is required to present his proposed project in person to the Troop Committee for additional insights, comments, suggestions, and ultimate approval.

“On its way to approval, a project has input from many sources and members.  Once the project is approved, it’s submitted to the District Eagle Project Committee for additional review, comment, and ultimate approval,” Richards explains. 

“After approval at the district level, another ‘district level’ Eagle coach is assigned to the Scout for addition guidance,” Richards says.

At the last Eagle Court of Honor, Liam Curran, Christopher Angus and William Angus were honored for having achieved the rank of Eagle Scout.  The projects that led each to earn their Eagle rank included completion of an adopt-a-storm drain program to keep sewer drain debris and trash-free (225 hours total man hours); the renovation of a very large gazebo at Oakland’s Elk Lodge, which involved the complete removal and rebuilding of the floor, railings and support beams and improving its structural integrity (300 hours); and removing and replacing a destroyed bridge and replacing it with a new one-ton bridge in the Ramapo Reservation (381) hours.

Since then, Robert Alanakyan, who worked on the Danny D’Elia Building, has passed his Eagle Rank Scout Master conference and his Eagle Board of Review and is now officially a Troop 49 Eagle Scout.  Currently, there are an additional five scouts in Troop 49 who have attained the rank of Life Scout and are working toward completing their Eagle projects, as well.

“The 121 Eagle Scouts produced by Troop 49 since its inception will exceed 125 in about a month or so,” Richards points out.

“As the young boys work their way through the lower ranks by learning about knots, fire safety, proper use of tools, identification of plants and animals, they become ready for the challenges ahead in the upper ranks of Scouting where learning responsibility, problem-solving, adapting, finding solutions and leadership lie ahead,” Richards says.

“And with the guidance of the Pathfinders, they learn to be confident and competent at a young age.  As men, they are natural leaders."