Bennett David '18 Wins William T. Hornaday
Silver Medal in Conservation
Bennett David '18 has won the William T. Hornaday Silver Medal in Conservation, the highest Boy Scouts of America award for conservation and the rarest award in scouting. Only 134 silver medals have been awarded since its creation by American zoologist and conservationist Dr. William T. Hornaday in 1914. Only two other medals have been awarded in North Carolina. While more than 55,000 Eagle Scouts have been awarded this year, there have only been three Hornaday Silver Medals.
To be eligible for the award, candidates must complete projects in four different areas of conservation. They are similar to Eagle Scout projects, but larger in scale and duration. In addition to the service project component required for an Eagle Project, Hornaday Projects have two additional phases: scientific research to identify the problem and potential solutions, as well as education and promotion to get others to help.
David completed four massive conservation projects to earn the honor. He said he is “extremely grateful,” for the silver medal.
"Over 900 people worked directly on the four projects. The true number of people would be much larger if we were able to count all the contributors who have participated in the subsequent projects that have followed the demonstration projects," David said. "I am very thankful for the essential support, expertise, and participation that everyone brought to the table along the way. Because this was new ground in our region and only earned twice before in our state, we had to learn what was required and generally expected of the winners. It would've been impossible without the support of Mr. Marchal (with the N.C.Arboretum), my advisor, and the participation of the students at my school, and the faculty at Christ School as well. I also really appreciate all the conservation experts and organizations involved."
He thanks Kim Brand and Audubon NC, ecologist Bob Gale and MountainTrue, Dave Russell and RiverLink, Nina Veteto and Monarch Rescue WNC, Phyllis Stiles and Bee City USA and Eric Bradford and Asheville GreenWorks.
Joshua Christ, Daniel Boone Council Scout Executive, said praise and more should be heaped on the teenager. David is the only Scout in the 96-year history of the Daniel Boone Council to earn this achievement, and only the third in the whole state of North Carolina.
“Bennett David is a very impressive young man and epitomizes what Scouting is all about, character and leadership development and cheerful service," Christ said. "We are all extremely proud of Bennett for organizing these conservation projects to benefit conservation efforts in Western North Carolina. We hope his leadership motivates other Scouts to follow in his footsteps and work towards this amazing accomplishment.”
At Christ School’s end-of-year Awards Ceremony, Bennett had the highest GPA in the 10th grade and won the Physics Award and the Servant Leadership Award. He has been on the high honor roll since arriving at Christ School in the eighth grade.
Earlier this month, Bennett David's conservation work also earned him the Roosevelt-Ashe Outstanding Youth Award from Wild South, a nonprofit that works to protect public lands in the Southeast.
Read the full Asheville Citizen-Times article and learn more about Bennett David’s Projects.
