Dawson James White, 18, of Sidney received Scouting’s highest rank, the Eagle Scout, during a ceremony Jan. 6.

The event, held at the Augusta Elks, capped off an 11-year Scouting career.

“I learned so much in Scouting,” White said, according to a news release from Chuck Mahaleris, district chairman for the Kennebec Valley District of Scouting. “I learned survival skills, people skills and how to be a decent person in Scouting.”

Dawson, a junior assistant Scoutmaster in Troop 401, will become an assistant Scoutmaster after he turns 21. He graduated from the Maine Virtual Academy and is working full time at Rainbow Valley Dairy Farm.

“I built a bunker gear dryer for the Sidney fire department’s turnout gear so it will take a day instead of a week to dry, and built shelving for above their new extractor which is an industrial washing machine. They also had a six-inch ledge that had no safety marker on it so we did that,” Dawson said of his Eagle Scout project, which benefited the Sidney Volunteer Fire Department. Overall, 80 hours of volunteer work were spent on the project.

Sarah White, Dawson’s mother, pinned the Eagle Scout medal to his uniform. Dawson in turn presented pins to his parents Darin and Sarah White.

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