Chris Denise of Saratoga earned the highest mark of achievement in the Boy Scouts of America this spring--that of Eagle Scout.
Nationally, only two boys out of 100 choose to pursue Scouting to the level of Eagle, but in Chris' 58-member Troop 325, six other young men also earned Eagle Scout status at the same time: James Anderson, Donald Gagliasso, Robert Long, Andrew Mellors and Michael Weisz of San Jose and Peter Hoover of Campbell.
In order to reach the level at which he can initiate an Eagle project, by or before the age of 18, a Boy Scout must earn at least 21 merit badges and advance through seven ranks. He must demonstrate competence in a number of disciplines, including first aid, citizenship, leadership, conservation and knowledge of the outdoors. To become an Eagle, a Boy Scout is responsible for planning and executing a community service project, and recruiting and organizing others to assist him.
Chris' project was constructing an artificial creek in Moreland Woods, a natural area adjacent to Rogers Middle School in San Jose that is maintained for use by science classes and community groups. The creek is 90 feet long, four feet wide and two feet deep. Chris and his crew first laid a plastic membrane over the creek bed, followed by two inches of sand and two inches of reinforced concrete with layers of field stones, river rock, gravel and sand to form a natural-looking waterway. According to Chris' father George Denise, who is Scoutmaster of Troop 325, his son's project required a total of 367 hours.
A senior at Prospect High School, Chris has been a member of the school band and wrestling team throughout his four years. He is a Junior Assistant Scoutmaster and instructor and administrative vice-chief for the Santa Clara County Boy Scout Council's Order of the Arrow, which is an honors service group within the Scouting movement.
Chris is a member of the National Ski Patrol at the Tahoe-Donner ski area and works part time at Ski Renter on DeAnza Boulevard. He also runs a business of his own, for which he buys bulk amounts of Magic: The Gathering fantasy trading cards, re-packages them and sells them over the Internet on a website he designed. He is an active member of the Saratoga Federated Church's youth group and will attend UC-Riverside this fall, where he plans to major in business.
Saratoga, California Since 1955
Chris Denise
