Teen refurbishes hydrants for his Eagle Scout project
JACKSON TWP — A soon-to-be Eagle Scout wrapped up painting 93 fire hydrants Sunday, ending four weekends spent on the service project.
Jaxon Owens, of Troop 403 in Cranberry Township, partnered with the Harmony Fire District for his Eagle Scout project. Along with help from family and some friends, the 14-year-old located lost hydrants, cleaned up neglected hydrants, and updated mapping software the district uses when responding to a fire.
“I've been getting rust off, painting them and putting reflective tape on,” Jaxon said.
Along the way, Jaxon found three hydrants previously unmapped and forgotten by the fire department, according to Harmony firefighter Robbie Gregor. He also corrected 17 hydrants on software firefighters use when responding to an emergency call.
“Sometimes you only have a couple minutes to get water on a fire before it's a complete loss,” Jaxon said. “Finding the hydrant easily in those couple seconds can mean life or death. It's huge, when it comes down to it.”
Several of the hydrants were desperately in need of Jaxon's help. Some were coated in rust. Many needed extensive weeding just to be visible.
One of them, Jaxon said, had a large hole and needed to be replaced.
“Some were in terrible shape,” Jaxon said. “Some of the paint was 18 years old and very rusted. They were almost down to the metal.”
Jaxon's parents, Melissa and Jason, said they were proud of their son. He's been in Scouts since he was 6 years old.
“It's great to see the leadership values coming out in him,” Jason Owens said.
Jaxon is a ninth-grader at Seneca Valley Intermediate High School.
The team went through five or six gallons of paint and three gallons of primer.
Crowdfunding online helped cover much of the costs.
Several donors supplied equipment and other aid. Jaxon provided the following list of donors: Lowe's of Cranberry, Sherwin Williams of Cranberry, Benjamin Moore of Cranberry, Sapienza's Service, George Riggin Specialty Auto, i.e. Insurance, Addams Autocycle Collision, Wunderbar Coffee & Crepes, Darn Yard Needles & Thread, Dairy Queen of Harmony, Subway of Harmony/Cranberry, Bottlebrush Gallery, Jackson Township Works Department and Harmony Fire District.
