Rockwood teen helps out local fire department
Rockwood Volunteer Fire Department has a new fire pit at Rockwood grove, thanks to teenager Dustin Dran.Dran, 15, from Rockwood Troop 5538, received his Eagle Scout Rank Badge at the annual Blue & Gold banquet. He took on revamping the Rockwood Volunteer Fire Department's fire pit that the firemen use to cook chicken for their fundraiser dinners.
“I was recommended the project by Jason Atchison, who is a member of Rockwood Volunteer Fire Department, when I was volunteering at his son's Eagle Scout project which was also at the Rockwood grove," Dran said in an email. "I looked at the fire pit and realized that it needed be restored. The fire department was requesting it to be completely under the existing pavilion that was over top of it.“
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He said the fire pit is very important to the Rockwood fire hall, and it is used every summer for multiple chicken roasts to help fund the hall.
"I knew that donations would be easy to receive since the roastings bring the community together,” he said.Dran did some redesign of the pit to make it work better.
“The first thing that had to be done was the pit had to be extended by about 10 feet in order to use the full length of the pavilion it is under," he said. "Next, I had to demolish an eroding part of the fire pit that was on the other end of the pavilion which was protruding from underneath the pavilion."
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Dran said he rebuilt a piece of the wall in order to fit the previously eroding end underneath the pavilion. And finally they sealed any crack or break in the wall with mortar.
On May 9, he used cinder blocks to build up the pit's walls on the side he extended the prior week. Finally he filled the walls with shale and sealed it off with mortar.
“The person I have to thank the most would be Scott Norris. He aided me in providing valuable tools that helped make the project possible," Dran said.
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He said Troop 5538 provided multiple volunteers who contributed to the project.
"Shaffer Brick and Block, SDC Building Center and the Rockwood American Legion all made major donations that also led to the fire pit being restored. I will always be thankful for those who took part in establishing me to complete my project which led to me achieving the rank of Eagle,” Dran said.
Dran also was able to donate $500 to the fire department along with his project. It took more than 110 volunteer hours to complete the project.
Scouting for Dran
Dran is the son of Mollie Dran and late Jarrod Dran. He's a sophomore at Rockwood Area High School, where he plays football, shoots rifle on the varsity squad and runs track where he was named captain of the team.
Dran says Scouting has provided him with many opportunities to experience new activities and develops skills for life. He's had many opportunities to give back to his community. Over the years he has helped place flags on veterans' grave sites, helped collect and sort food for the local food bank, help out at the Humane Society, clean up the Jubilee grounds, and plant grass at the Little League field.
His favorite community service event is helping to serve pancake dinners at church on Fat Tuesday with the Scouts.
After high school, Dran plans to attend a four-year nursing program to earn his Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree. After undergraduate school, he plans to further his nursing education in the field of anesthesia where he will earn a doctorate. Anesthesia is in his DNA. He will be the third generation of his family to go to anesthesia school.
This article originally appeared on The Daily American: Rockwood teen earns Eagle Scout
