BY PATRICIA KELLER
WEST MILFORD — It was two years ago at a family event for his sister’s field hockey team when Harrison Christen first got the idea for his Eagle Scout project. Upon speaking with the West Milford varsity field hockey coach, Krista Provost, who was also Harrison’s eighth grade social studies teacher, she mentioned that the girls’ field hockey equipment shed needed to be replaced.
Harrison’s sister has since become a captain on the team.
“This year when I was looking for a project, my sister reminded me that the shed was still not done so I asked Ms. Provost if the project was still available," said Harrison. It was.
“We have a storage shed (8 x 10) at the Kilgallen Field, and it's been invaded by snakes, chipmunks, spiders, and all kinds of animals for the past few seasons," said Provost. "Each season we clean it out and finally decided to replace the shed after everyone being terrified of going into the shed to get any equipment because 'Mr. Snake' was always hiding underneath whatever we needed!”
Provost was excited when Harrison approached her with the idea to replace the shed for his Eagle Scout project.
With all of the funding Harrison needed for the project provided by the West Milford Field Hockey Booster Club, he just needed the materials to build the shed and the volunteers to help build it. Harrison began by sending out letters to local businesses, seeking discounted prices for the materials needed to build the new shed. He then visited each business, shopping to get the best price possible.
“I worked with 84 Lumber and they had the best price and they worked well to accommodate anything I needed,” he said.
It was 84 Lumber in Oakland that provided Harrison with all of the building material and Sears Hardware in Hewitt that provided all of the paint needed to complete the project.
Harrison said the building part of the project took two weekends to complete, from June 28 until July 6.
“The first weekend was spent demolishing the old shed and removing all the material,” he said. He organized a group of volunteers to demolish the old shed, and the West Milford Board of Education helped to get rid of the debris. The materials for the new shed were delivered on schedule. Harrison organized volunteers from his troop, family, friends, and some field hockey players to help build and paint the new shed.
“The second weekend was spent building the new shed including painting it and putting in new shelving and brackets for storing all the field hockey equipment,” Harrison said. His family paid for the volunteers’ meals each day they were working on the project.
Provost said that after a few months of planning, “They took down the shed one weekend," said Provost, "and then built the new shed another weekend! Quick! It looks fantastic, and the team is amazed!”
She said the finished shed, freshly painted in the authentic West Milford black and gold colors, “is absolutely beautiful!” Provost said the field hockey team wants to hold their team meetings in the new shed, “That’s how nice it is!”
Harrison is entering his junior year as a student at Passaic County Technical Institute (PCTI) and expects to receive his Eagle Award within the next two months.
“I had a great experience working with everyone," he said. "I really enjoyed working on a project that helped my sister and my community. I knew the project was going to be challenging but I did not realize the challenging part was all the preparation that went into the project before the actual work started. The time and effort involved in getting the material ordered and shipped to the school took much more time than I ever would have imagined.”