By MATTHEW STUCHLIK

Special to The Hays Daily News

Sixty-eight Boy Scout leaders and even a few Scouts gathered Feb. 6 in the Black and Gold room at Fort Hays State University to celebrate accomplishments for 2009.

The Baden Powell Banquet is an annual event recognizing youth and adult Scouting leaders and is open to all members of the community to learn what the Scouting program has accomplished in the past year. It is in honor of the founder of the Scouting program worldwide, Lord Baden Powell. The event takes place during Scouting anniversary month. The Boy Scouts of America was founded Feb. 8, 1910, and is celebrating its 100th anniversary of Scouting.

Boy Scout Leaders from the Wheatland District, which consists of Gove, Trego, Ellis, Russell, Rooks and Osborne counties, recognized two deserving leaders with the highest award a leader can receive in the district, the District Award of Merit.

The winners of these two awards for 2010 were Doug Press of Quinter, who has served many years in Scouting. Press served as cubmaster in Quinter from 1991 to 1995. He then moved up into Boy Scouts and became scoutmaster from 1995 to 2001. During his tenure, he helped produce more than 10 Eagle Scouts. Press then moved up into the district, where he served as a unit commissioner between 2001 to 2006. Since 2006, he has done a great job serving as district commissioner, a role in which he still serves.

The second winner of the District Award of Merit was Misty Higdon of Stockton. Higdon first joined Scouting in September 2004, when her oldest son, Braden, signed up as a Tiger Cub in Cub Scouts with Pack 103 in Stockton. Since then, she has served as wolf den leader, bear een, webelos den leader, cubmaster, committee member and assistant scoutmaster. Higdon also has served as the district webmaster for a number of years and has helped plan several activities as a member of the district committee.

After presenting the District Awards of Merit, the Wheatland District of the Coronado Area Council then recognized all Eagle Scouts in attendance, including Matt Stuchlik, Dave Haberman, Scott Logan, Danny Higgins, Aaron Cunningham, Zachary Kuntz, Paul Adams and Kyle Eilts, all of Hays; Wes Carmichael, Plainville; Doran Schurr, Osborne; and Ken Edgett, Great Bend.

There are more than 500 Eagle Scouts living in the Wheatland District.

The annual event recognizes youth and adult Scouting leaders and is open to all members of the community to learn what the Scouting program has accomplished in the past year.

Other award winners from the evening's event included; Outstanding Cubmaster Award - Tony Gabel of Hays; Outstanding Scoutmaster Award - Keith Eilts of Hays; Above and Beyond (Youth Award) - Braden Higdon of Stockton; Outstanding Trooper Award - Kyle Eilts of Hays; Outstanding Cubber Award - Nikkie Wise of Stockton; Outstanding Scouter Award - Danny Higgins of Hays; Clarence Cook Memorial Eager Beaver Awards went to Dustin and Kristi Schaefli, and Steve Urban and Laura Leiker, all of Hays.