GREAT FALLS — Cemeteries are sacred places where families memorialize their loved ones, but maintaining them can be difficult. Thanks to the efforts of one Eagle Scout, Calvary Cemetery now has a much-needed waterline to aid in maintenance.
Edward Boland, a high school senior, led the initiative as part of his quest to earn the Eagle Scout award.
Quentin Shores reports - watch the video here:
“It's about 1,800 feet worth of pipe. And it was so that this cemetery here could have water,” Boland explained.
The project has personal significance for Boland, whose great aunt is buried at Calvary.
Several years ago, a grass fire damaged many of the cemetery's ancient wooden tombstone monuments.
Boland expects that constructing a waterline will improve the grounds' protection against future incidents.
Boland and his father saved time and labor by laying the line underground with a pipe puller rather than excavating deep trenches.
Nonetheless, the project took roughly four months to complete, eventually connecting Calvary Cemetery to the water supply at Highland Cemetery.
Boland claims that the skills and principles he learned through scouting — from leadership to tenacity — have equipped him for his future objectives, which include studying physics and becoming an engineer in the United States Air Force.
"It was worth it to help the cemeteries," Boland stated.
That's what an Eagle Scout does.
Calvary Cemetery is just a few hundred yards south of Highland Cemetery:
