A 17-year-old member of Boy Scout Troop 179 of Fredericksburg has attained his Eagle Scout rank, the highest honor in the Boy Scouts of America.

Nathaniel Crowther was presented the award by the troop's previous Scoutmaster, Barry Jones, in an Eagle Court of Honor ceremony at the troop Christmas banquet

Troop 179 is sponsored by Fairview Baptist Church.

Nathan presented Jones and assistant Scoutmasters Tim Slaydon and Steve Gaioni with mentor pins for their dedication, hard work and mentorship during his years with the troop.

Sammy Zambon, chief ranger at Caledon State Park, was guest speaker, with a message to troop members about the importance of volunteerism.

For his Eagle service project, Nathan led 18 volunteers in the construction of a 65-foot-long boardwalk at Caledon. The project took several months to complete and more than 350 hours of volunteer time, and drew praise during construction from hikers who praised the volunteers for their efforts.

Nathan began Scouting as a Tiger Cub while at Holy Cross Academy in 2001. He earned the Arrow of Light in March 2006 and joined Troop 179 soon after.

He has served in various leadership positions including patrol leader, assistant patrol leader, historian and quartermaster.

Nathan camped more than 92 nights with the troop and earned 30 merit badges.

He participated in three high adventure trips with troop crews. In 2009 he was Crew Leader for a 35-mile backpacking trip at High Knoll in Pulaski County. That year he also traveled to the back country of Manitoba, Canada, on a 65-mile canoeing trip with a Troop 179 Northern Tier program crew.

In 2011, he was the Wilderness Pledge Guia for a Troop 179 crew as they backpacked 85 miles at Philmont, located in the Sangre de Cristo range of the Rocky Mountains in New Mexico.

Nathan is the son of Steve and Joan Crowther of Stafford.

He is a senior at James Monroe High School, where he is member of the cross country and tennis varsity teams.