Mason Klaus awarded Eagle Scout in special ceremonies Saturday

New Eagle Scout Mason Klaus shares the excitement of his Saturday ceremony with his parents Tommy and Kathy Klaus.

Warren Mason Klaus was awarded his Eagle rank at the Washington Boy Scout Hut in a special ceremony Saturday evening.

"Mason follows a long tradition of Washington and Wilkes County young men who have earned the Eagle Rank," said Scoutmaster Bobby Standard. Culminating a long career in Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts, Mason has earned a rank achieved by only fivepercent of those who participate in Scouting.

The fact that a boy is an Eagle Scout, Standard said, has always carried with it a special significance,not only in Scouting but also as he enters higher education, business or industry, and community service. The award is a performance-based achievement whose standards have been well-maintained over the years, with only 1.7 million boys attaining the rank since 1912.

Klaus' Eagle project was a conservation project for a portion of the School Street Cemetery. Leading a team of Scouts and volunteers, Klaus helped to clean up trash and help fillin depressed graves under the direction of a supervising ar- chaeologist. This project was part of a larger community effort to locate the entire cemetery and to develop a conservation plan and heritage tourism plant for the cemetery.

"Photographs of Mason's School Street Cemetery project are included in Georgia's new cemetery preservation booklet titled 'Preserving Georgia's Historic Cemeteries,'" said David Jenkins. "Mason's Eagle Project was also included in filming for an upcoming 2006 telecast of GPB's program Georgia Traveler."

Klaus becomes the latest in a series of six local Scouts to attain the highest rank in Scouting. "Mason has been an important leader in Troop 34 and I look forward to his contributions as an Eagle Scout and adult leader," Standard said. "Not every boy who joins a Boy Scout troop earns the Eagle Scout rank; only about 5 percent of all Boy Scouts do so. Nevertheless, the goals of Scouting - citizenship training, character development, and personal fitness - remain important for all Scouts, whether or not they attain the Eagle Scout rank."

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