Scout helps Eagles adorn their nest
Project puts new sign at Pop Warner facility
BY JENNIFER KOHLHEPP Staff Writer
Now everyone will know where the Eagles roost. Thanks to Arjun Shah, 18, a student at Brookdale Community College, Middletown, and a member of Millstone Boy Scout Troop 116, visitors to Wagner Farm Park on Baird Road in Millstone will know they have arrived at the Pop Warner teams' nest. Shah built a blue and yellow sign denoting "Home of the Millstone Eagles."

ERIC SUCAR staff Arjun Shah, of Millstone, created a sign for the entrance to Wagner Farm Park in Millstone to earn the rank of Eagle Scout in Millstone Troop 116.

Patty Meyer, an Eagle Scout adviser and assistant scoutmaster, said, "My daughter's involved in Pop Warner and so many times you hear of people driving by this place or not being sure if they are in the right place when looking for a game." "Now when people come from Franklin Township and other faraway places, this sign will let them know that they have arrived at their destination."

The project, which helped Shah achieve Eagle Scout status in the Boy Scouts, took him three months to complete.

The hardest part of the project was not constructing the sign, he said, but having to make presentations to and obtain approvals from various township officials after drawing up his proposal for the project. He said he drew up designs for the sign five different times to meet the requirements set before him.

Meyer said, "I've seen him manage his time, mature, and give leadership to the other boys while doing this project. I'm so impressed with him. He really did a great job."

The township dug the holes for the sign posts, but Shah oversaw the pouring of the concrete into the holes for the sign's installation. He and his father, Pradeep, hand-built the sign, less the metal eagle that adorns it, which the Millstone Township Pop Warner Eagles donated to the project.

Shah started a barter system with Northeastern Lumber in Millstone for the lumber for the project. He washed some of the company's trucks in exchange for the supplies.

Beyond completing the sign, Shah had to demonstrate leadership and community-service skills, obtain numerous merit badges and go through six other Scout ranks before obtaining Eagle Scout status. He thanked his parents and Scout leaders, Millstone resident Michael Waldron Sr., the township's Recreation Committee, the Township Committee, township Business Administrator Jim Pickering, Code Enforcement Officer Pat Hynes and Deputy Mayor Robert Kinsey, as well as the students and staff at Collier High School, Wickatunk section of Marlboro, for helping him advance through the ranks in scouting and on his life's journey.

His mother, Shrabanee, said, "As a parent, I can say that Arjun traveled a road not many kids travel on and I am proud that he hung in there and made it through. He's a super kid and is the definition of everything that is scouting. I'm really proud of him."

Shah said he will try to remain involved with scouting but prefers skateboarding. He is a skateboarder whom Nike, Seed, Ekko and other companies sponsor to travel across the U.S. to participate in various competitions. At this point for Shah, college is his backup plan.