Chris Northup ‘18 becomes Eagle Scout

Congratulations goes out to Chris Northup ‘18 for becoming an Eagle Scout. Chris had a particularly unique path in attaining the rank due to his troop being in Saudi Arabia. Chris, who started attending Farragut in August 2014, had a keen interest in sustainable farming and homesteading for many years.

While attending one of the Dhahran organic market days, Chris had the idea of building a compost system for the community. Chris contacted Tina Ghant of the Dhahran Garden Group, who was very excited about the idea and said they had been wanting to introduce composting methods to group members. Chris proceeded to research composters, designed a barrel composter, and provided the leadership to build and install the composter for the Dhahran Garden Group.

He completed his project in March of 2014 and all other requirements to reach the rank, including his Scoutmaster conference by May 2015. According to his mother, there were some difficulties getting his application verified because the troop became part of a new council, and he was unable to get a board of review before he left Saudi Arabia in late June. He did not return to Saudi Arabia until Christmas break and there were not enough Eagle committee members present in the Kingdom to conduct his review. The council and the troop committee decided that it would be appropriate to conduct his Board of Review via Skype.

With Mr. Edwards serving as his advocate, Chris sat for and passed the Board of Review in the student union at Admiral Farragut Academy in March 2015. Chris was able to attend his Court of Honor in Saudi Arabia, which occurred on Wednesday, June 24. In preparation for his Court of Honor, Chris had the privilege of flying American Flags over the U.S. Consulates with some of the U.S. Marines stationed there. He will receive one from the troop as a gift, and he plans on bringing one back to give to Mr. Edwards and the Color Guard at Farragut.