LINN — Linn senior Jason Greer of Troop 17 completed his Eagle Scout project last summer, ultimately selecting to erect a new directory at St. George Cemetery. “It’s a good project. It’s an important one,” he said.

The old directory sign required full replacement when updates were needed. It was weathered and didn’t look the greatest, so Greer set out to design a more sustainable solution.

“I took pictures of the old sign,” he said. “I drew up a draft and showed the cemetery board. They told me to change a few things.”

The final concept featured a weather-protected display, with a board protected by plexiglass. “They can just change it whenever they need to,” Greer said.

Pat Muenks of the St. George Cemetery Board was especially helpful in analyzing the design and suggesting improvements, Greer noted.

This journey began long before the summer of his 18th birthday, and Greer had a leg up on other scouts because his parents, Travis and Lori Greer, have been in leadership positions with Troop 17 for many years.

Though their supervisory function did not play a role in Jason’s advancement, Lori acknowledged there may have been strain at times. “Travis and I are always at all the activities, so it makes it a little bit harder for our kids, because they do have to find another person to explain to them what we already know they’ve done. I know it’s made it a bit harder for them, but we just wanted to make sure that they knew they earned it and that they can be proud of what they’ve accomplished.”

Throughout the process, Greer said his parents intentionally avoided signing off on requirements.

“My dad said he wasn’t going to sign off on any of my requirements,” Greer said. “I had to go find someone else.”

That approach ensured the accomplishment remained his own.

“That makes it mean a lot more,” Greer said. “I can’t just have someone sign off on my stuff.”

His father said that approach was intentional. “With me serving as Scoutmaster of Troop 17, I have been pretty hard on Jason, and have made a pact to not sign off on any of his requirements so that it was clear that he was not just passing through the program,” he wrote in a letter of recommendation, noting Jason had to seek approval from others and develop leadership skills through that process. “This has made getting this rank more challenging for him, as his mom and I are usually the leaders for most events, and we have made him seek out approval from a third party. In doing so, he has had to hone the skills that have helped him take charge as a leader.

“When Jason started scouts as a Cub Scout, he was always a leader and always willing to help show those around him how to do things,” Travis wrote, adding that he feels privileged to not only being Jason’s dad, but also his Cub Scout leader and Scoutmaster when he crossed over into Boy Scouts. “Jason has always been a thinker and is very good at working with people with various skill sets to be successful as a team.”

His mother echoed the sentiment. “Whatever you put into it is what you get back out,” she said.

Greer’s introduction to scouting came at an early age. He had been sitting in on scout meetings for two years before he was even old enough to join, absorbing the environment long before he formally entered the program.

“I just went with him,” Greer said of attending alongside his older brother, Shane. “It seemed like you’re not really learning anything, but at the same time you are. You’re just getting to hang out with friends, and then you end up learning something.”

By the time he officially joined as a Tiger Scout in first grade, Greer already had a working understanding of the program.

“I already pretty well knew everything,” he said. “I was kind of a smart aleck, but I’d say that gave me a big advantage — having a two-year head start.”

That early foundation also led to a key friendship that would carry through his scouting years. After meeting Carson Kliethermes in the first grade, Greer encouraged him to join.

“I said, ‘Hey, you should probably come out and do this. It’s pretty fun,’” Greer said. “And then he showed up and stayed.”

That group dynamic — built around friends — became central to the experience.

“It definitely helps having someone you can relate to better,” Greer said. “It wasn’t just Carson — we had him, Tyler (Wagner), Craig (Laughlin) … a bunch of my friends there. It made all the campouts and activities just seem like a hangout, not a work situation.”

Greer said his older brother also played a major role in shaping his path, both as a model and as motivation.

“It definitely set a standard,” Greer said. “I just wanted to be in Boy Scouts the day he crossed over, too, so I could try to beat him. I was trying to beat him to Eagle Scout.”

At the same time, that relationship provided a built-in learning curve. “He made all the mistakes first, and I got to learn from them,” Greer said. “What he did right, I could take and do myself.”

Watching older scouts also helped guide decisions. “The troop was split up with patrols, and our patrol was just our friend group,” said Greer, noting they watched what the older patrols did. “If it worked, we incorporated it. If not, we did our own thing.”

Greer pointed to several moments that stood out during his years in scouting, including early academic-style challenges and hands-on experiences.

Completing the Citizenship in the World badge at the Merit Badge University was one of the first major hurdles.

“I had to look through all the prerequisites for it, so it was almost like a homework assignment,” he said. “But after that, it just became a lot easier to do — I understood the process.”

Other experiences were more physical.

During rifle shooting at camp, Greer competed while recovering from a broken arm. “I had to hold the gun with one hand, use my cast to get the bolt open, and I was still outshooting everyone,” he recalled of the .22-caliber long-rifle competition at 20 yards, much closer than the 600 yards he was accustomed to shooting at home.

The lifesaving merit badge he completed with Kliethermes provided another challenge.

“That one was pretty intense,” Greer said. “You have to jump in a pool with someone wrapped around you to simulate someone drowning. You have to shed them off and carry them back. It’s like 160 pounds of dead weight on you trying to swim.”

Lori added, “As a parent, I won’t watch that one.”

Camping trips, however, remained his favorite part of the experience. One of his favorite scouting memories is the first time he went to Spring Creek, and youth scouts completed orienteering. “We had to find certain locations that had snacks buried, and having to be on your own and do that — well, it’s kind of scary, but then at the same time, I felt like an adventurer.”

Greer advanced through ranks, earning Life Scout in junior high.

As Greer entered high school, time demands increased significantly.

“Freshman year, I started football and didn’t realize how time-intensive it was,” he said. “Trying to balance football, work, Boy Scouts, and just having fun with your friends was hard.”

Scouting temporarily became secondary. “Boy Scouts, for a little bit, got put on the back burner,” Greer said. “It was harder to be excited to do that when I had so much stuff going on. I didn’t have a lot of free time, but it was still a fun activity to do. As I got older, I started coming back to the meetings.”

He began seriously considering his project last summer after Troop 17 Committee Chair Debbie Backes suggested an improvement to the cemetery.

A sense of urgency grew when Greer realized he was running out of time to earn Eagle ahead of his 18th birthday.

“Time starts flying by,” he said. “I was like, I have to pick this project or nothing’s going to get done.”

Greer said the early stages of the project required learning the process from the ground up.

“I started off clueless,” he said. “First, I made a list. I had to get approval and a location.”

Greer noted that his initial concept included a flowerbed beneath the sign, with a replacement sign located in the same place. However, the cemetery board designed to move it to the crossroads, so Greer presented what became the final draft.

“It’s bigger and wider,” he said. “It’s weather-proof and the plexiglass can be locked.”

Additionally, a concrete pad was poured to serve as a walk-up to the sign. Brian Patterson of B&P Construction donated labor and equipment to dig the foundation.

Osage County Concrete donated materials and labor for the project.

Instead of a flowerbed, the cemetery board opted for a gravel base beneath the sign.

The older sign was a flat piece of aluminum, and changes required a whole new directory.

Once those steps were completed, support from the community began to build. “After that, I wasn’t really concerned anymore — people were ready to help,” he said.

Multiple local contributors played a role in bringing the project together.

“Osage Ambulances donated the aluminum, had the right thickness of metal, and made the base plates” said Greer. “They offered to put it together, but I wanted to do that myself, but if we needed anything, they were there for us. It took a little bit of a burden off my shoulders.”

With materials secured, Greer and his dad created a more detailed plan, measured materials, and then moved into construction. “We welded the sign together, ground it down, and got it ready,” he said of his friends.

Site preparation required additional work.

“We had to dig a trench,” Greer said, adding that his friends and State Tech students helped. “There were nights we were working pretty late, hand-digging holes around 40 inches deep.”

The work often continued late into the evening after football practices. “He worked two jobs, I think at that time, so everybody was scrambling,” Lori noted.

In total, the project spanned roughly two months, adding he and his father worked at least 80 man-hours. “It took a long time, and it’s a lot of work,” Greer said. “I’m glad we got it done.”

Greer has worked for Jason Dudenhoeffer Lawn Care for the last four years, mowing and maintaining lawns in Osage, Gasconade, and Cole counties. “He works after school, weekends, and on Mondays when he is not in school,” Jason Dudenhoeffer noted in his letter recommending Greer for Eagle Scout. “He drives the work truck with equipment to job sites for the other members of the lawn crew. He has proven to be responsible and hardworking, and shows leadership skills and good character when he is at work.”

In his letter to the Eagle Scout Board, Travis Greer noted that Jason had completed 39 merit badges and earned special awards from summer camp, such as the mile swim and other water sports. He attended NYLT training and was a member of OA. Jason has served in various leadership roles including Senior Patrol Leader, Patrol Leader, Chaplain Aide, and Quartermaster. “I have no doubt in my mind that Jason deserves to receive the Eagle Scout award,” Travis wrote. “He has completed all of the requirements for the rank of Eagle, has completed his project, and is in the process of completing documentation for all that he has done. Jason lives the Scout Oath and Law and strives to be successful and help those around him also be successful. We often get compliments from his friends’ parents regarding how well mannered and mature he is. It makes me proud to be his dad.”

Former Linn football assistant coach Cody Fulkerson also recommended Greer for the promotion. “I am honored to recommend Jason Greer for the rank of Eagle Scout,” he wrote. “Jason is a natural leader and comes from a solid, well-respected family with amazing morals and ethics. He’s a problem-solver who never walks away from a challenge and always produces quality work. He welcomes and always takes challenges head-on. I fully support his advancement to the rank of Eagle Scout.”

Linn R-2 English Instructor Sam Tramel’s recommendation was based on Greer’s character, accountability, and a willingness to grow. “When mistakes do happen, he is quick to own them, ready to learn, and never makes excuses,” Tramel noted. “He seeks out feedback and takes responsibility, then asks how to fix it or where to find the answer.”

The Eagle Scout Board approved his project in November after a thorough review, and he and Kliethermes were recently presented their ranks at the recent Court of Honor. Troop 17 incorporated past Eagles and their siblings in the ceremony to recognize their achievements. “It was nice to see them come back and help support the program,” Lori said.

Jason added, “Even Craig (Laughlin) came back, so that was nice.”

Laughlin pursued an athletic path and after graduation this spring, he will play football at William Woods University.

Lori noted that not all Scouts stay with the program due to other activities such as sports, but that’s not a problem. “We always tell the kids when they’re in Scouts not to pick between Scouts and something else,” she explained. “Anything they can learn is something that helps them be better and well-rounded people whenever they get out. We’re super proud of all scouts, even if they quit and do something different. There are no hard feelings; we’re so proud of them for all the things that they go on to do.”

With his project complete and his Eagle Scout rank achieved, Greer said the recognition carries lasting meaning. “There’s a wall of Eagle Scouts,” he said. “If I work hard enough, I could be there.”

Now, his name will be part of that display.

“Seeing my face on that wall next to all those guys means a lot,” Greer said. “Those guys put in hundreds of hours.”

He also sees the impact extending beyond himself.

“Some little kid could look up and say, ‘I want to be on there too,’” he said. “Then for him to work hard and get there as well.”

Lori and Travis Greer are understandably proud parents, with two sons achieving the rank of Eagle Scout. Their daughter, Emily, is working toward hers. “We’re super proud of them,” Lori said, adding that the journey to Eagle Scout helped shape leadership qualities in Shane and Jason. “They end up being leaders even when they don’t try to be. That just falls onto them.”

For Jason, the experience reflects both personal growth and a broader tradition. “Once an Eagle, always an Eagle,” he said.