Baird’s Eagle Scout project puts his signature on Sapps Run
Daniel Baird's Eagle Scout project saw him create this sign for Sapps Run Preserve, former home of the Holmes County Fair.
West Holmes senior Daniel Baird enjoys working with teacher Dave McMillen and his school friends and using his skills in the buildings and trades classes at WHHS.
He has developed all of the leadership skills necessary to thrive in his time spent in Boy Scouts of America Troop #355 Holmesville.
Everything was in place for him to earn his Eagle Scout badge, one of the highest honors a Scout can receive.
All he needed was a project.
That project came to fruition when he was approached by Jen Halverson, director of Holmes County Park District, who said the former fairgrounds, which was renamed Sapps Run Preserve not long ago, needed new signage along the entrance at state Route 39.
It was an ideal project for Baird’s skillset, and he dove right in, creating a blueprint on how to create the sign, making all of the proper contacts and securing all of the material needed to build the sign, and then building it with the help of his Scout members.
It turned out to be a beautiful addition to Sapps Run that will now present a lasting memory of Baird’s time in the Scouts and his commitment to community.
“A lot of time went into this project,” Baird said. “Actually, a lot more time went into the actual planning of the sign than went into physically constructing it.”
One of the goals of an Eagle Scout project is developing leadership skills by creating opportunity for the Scout to invest time and effort into planning every step of the process of a project.
Baird said he was fortunate to have giving lumber companies in both Holmes Lumber and Keim Lumber, both of which supplied him with the necessary material to build the sign by donation.
He worked with Tekton in Berlin to draw up the blueprints and received additional aid from McMillen, who provided some material, the tools to build the sign and his guidance, and AARCO Industries in New York, which supplied him with the glass case.
“I’m really grateful to all of the people and businesses who helped me through this project,” Baird said. “We live in a wonderful community that is very giving.”
After years of having the former fairgrounds remain unnamed, the Holmes County Park District’s board turned to the community to rename the area and settled on Sapps Run.
With that in mind, Baird set his sights on creating an attractive sign that would enhance the entrance to the park, which is heavily utilized by area Scouting groups.
“We’re very grateful that Daniel stepped up and completed this project, and we know how much this preserve means to the Boy Scouts,” Halverson said. “Daniel took great initiative on the sign and provided us with the means to complete this great addition to the preserve, and we see so much growth for the future for that area.”
She also said seeing young adults take on roles in serving the community is exciting, knowing that contributing to the community is a win-win for everyone.
Baird said on April 2 he and a few helpers came in, drilled the holes and set the cement for the posts. On April 4 he and his crew returned to erect the sign, a true date to remember because Baird said it honored his late-grandfather Leo Helal’s birthday.
“I was excited to get it started and put it in place,” Baird said. “I think placing the (metal) roof on it was probably the most difficult part of the process because I have a little knowledge with that type of thing but not a lot. But we worked through it and got it done.”
The wooden sign features the name Sapps Run in bold cursive letters and a glass case that allows the Holmes County Park District to place messages inside.
The entire project took much of the day on April 4, and Baird said it was gratifying to see it finalized.
While undertaking the leadership role on the Eagle Scout project, Baird also had the fortune of being somewhat of a mentor to the Troop #355 members who helped him with the project.
He said the troop is filled with a lot of younger Scouts, so this was a golden opportunity for him to lead by example and show them the joy of creating and completing an Eagle Scout project.
“We have a young group, so they don’t have any experience working with other Scouts on an Eagle Scout project, and I think it was a good learning experience for them to better understand what creating an Eagle Scout project in the future might look like and what type of work goes into it.” Baird said. “I’m happy I had the chance to do that, and hopefully, it will encourage them to try it when the time comes because all of the time and effort it takes is ultimately important. It helps out the community, and it’s well worth it.”
Baird, who will attend Hocking College in Nelsonville to earn a degree in natural resources law enforcement, said Scouting has opened many doors for him, helped him develop public speaking skills and helped him build leadership skills.