Bemidji’s Kael Keilwitz Reaches Rank of Eagle Scout

By Matthew Freeman

Eagle Scout is the highest rank attainable in the Boy Scouts of America program. Since its inception in 1911, only 4% of Scouts have earned this rank after a lengthy review process, including the newest Eagle Scout right in Bemidji.

Kael Keilwitz is a member of Scouts BSA Troop 4025 in Bemidji. After several long and hard-fought years, he has done what few Scouts who sign up have achieved and reached the rank of Eagle Scout. A Court of Honor ceremony took place on Saturday to celebrate this rare achievement.

“[It] definitely was a great finish to the almost seven-year journey of me just going from being a complete handful, doesn’t know what he’s supposed to do and when he’s supposed to do it kid, to being right now where I can fly across the country with nothing but me and my friend Zach to West Virginia and then staff volunteer every day for two weeks straight just at the National Jamboree,” said Keilwitz.

It’s no easy feat to reach Eagle Scout, as many who are a part of the Scouts will tell you.

“Well, it takes a lot of work, it takes a lot of time,” said Troop 4025 Scout Master Greg Roberts. “There are lots of service hours to do. There’s lots of requirements to do. Everything from starting a campfire to setting up a tent to learning about stocks and bonds and savings and keeping yourself safe, keeping other people safe, hiking and swimming and camping and bicycling and all sorts of things.”

The badges the kids earn are synonymous with the Scouts, but they represent a whole lot more than just a patch on their sashes.

“The point of having a merit badge is not that you learned how to do it. It’s that if you’re wearing that badge, it’s supposed to mean, ‘Hey, if you asked me to do this, I can do it right here, right now,'” explained Keilwitz. “So each of them has different skills. To be an Eagle Scout, you have to earn 14 specific required merit badges and then seven or eight more on top of that – electives, are what we call them.”

Kael truly believes the Scouts are what made him who he is today and believes the Scouts are a great option for anyone thinking about joining in.

“Scouting has just overall been an amazing program for me. It’s an amazing space for people to be able to make mistakes and then learn from them and have the best teachers right there next to them that can help them along that way,” said Keilwitz. “And it introduces good sets of morals, how to be a good character in their community, nation, country, and as well just how to bond with other people and work in teams effectively well so that one day they can, if they want, get to this point where they get their Eagle Scout and their big Court of Honor celebration.”

The Scouts typically meet once a week and may hold special activities. Any boy or girl can sign up. Scouts BSA sign-ups start at 11 years old, while for Cub Scouts, children can sign up once they reach kindergarten.