{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://harris.house.gov/media/in-the-news/eagle-scout-project-honors-fallen-soldiers", "Eagle Scout Project Honors Fallen Soldiers", "2017-09-27", "2017", "2017-09", "Republican", "House", "MD", "Andy Harris", "H001052", "harris.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "GRASONVILLE \u2014 Veterans of Foreign Wars, Post 7464 hosted the unveiling of an Eagle Scout Project designed and orchestrated by Troop 765 Life Scout Jacob McLaughlin, 17, of Queenstown on Saturday, Sept. 23.. Boy Scout Troop 765 is sponsored by Safe Harbor Presbyterian Church in Stevensville.\nJacob achieved his Life rank when he was 13 years old. A young man must organize and lead whatever project he chooses to do, as long as it is previously approved by the local Boy Scout Council. The Scout must write the plan up and present it to the council. If it is approved, he then can move forward in making it happen.\nIt took Jacob nearly four years to do the main work of his proposed project \u2014 to find the names of all Queen Anne\u2019s County residents who served in the armed forces and died in combat in all wars in American history, starting with the American Revolutionary War and going through every major war through today, including the war in Afghanistan.\nHis work produced exactly 200 names. After confirming all 200, he went about arranging to have the names listed on three large plaques to be mounted outside the VFW in Grasonville. First, there is a plaque representing all the soldiers who died in the Revolutionary War, 17 of those were African Americans, designated with an asterisk next to their names. Jacob said, \u201cThe African American soldiers were listed as being members of the USCT (United States Colored Troops). That was also the designation from the military records for all who served in the Civil War. There are 61 soldiers from Queen Anne\u2019s County who were African Americans who died during the Civil War.\u201d\nThat high number of African American deaths can be attributed to former slave owners of Queen Anne\u2019s County being reimbursed by the federal government to have their former slaves enlist to join the Union army to help fight against the Confederacy the last year of the war. Since Maryland had been a slave state prior to the start of the war, arrangements were made in Maryland for former slave owners to direct their slaves to help out the Union, so the former slave owners did not take a total loss of dollars from slave property. It was one of the few areas Abraham Lincoln\u2019s Emancipation Proclamation did not apply in Maryland. All slaves were not set free for nothing.\nAdding the numbers of African Americans who died in combat in World War I, WWII, the Korean War, Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan, another 35 African Americans from Queen Anne\u2019s County are accounted for. The total number of African Americans out of the total 200 is 113.\nThe dedication ceremony included the playing of \u201cThe Star Spangled Banner\u201d and comments from Congressman Andy Harris, who presented Jacob with an American flag that had been flown over the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C.\nHarris said, \u201cEagle projects are special to serve the community, however, many Eagle projects don\u2019t last long. This one will last forever.\u201d\nThen, led first by Jacob, all 200 names were solemly read aloud. Ten different friends and family members participated in the reading, each reading approximately 20 names. At the conclusion of the reading, \u201cTaps\u201d was played. There were tears in a number of people\u2019s eyes at the ceremony remembering those from Queen Anne\u2019s County who gave their last full measure of devotion to the nation.\nCounty Commissioner Mark Anderson said, \u201cAll of the names of those listed on these plaques gave up their tomorrows for us today and for that American flag atop this flag pole. That we could all live in freedom.\u201d\nJacob spoke briefly to the audience about the hardest part of the work, \u201cgoing to all the different places to confirm the deaths of the many soldiers. I even went as far away as South Carolina!\u201d\nThough he has accomplished his Eagle Service Project, Jacob has still not achieved his ultimate goal of becoming an Eagle Scout. He has a few more requirements to finish before he turns 18, and must then complete an Eagle Board of Review (review of all requirements to achieve the rank of Eagle). Upon doing that, then he will be awarded Scouting\u2019s highest honor.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://harris.house.gov/media/in-the-news/eagle-scout-project-honors-fallen-soldiers"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.4943450223654509, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}