Troop 533’s Matthew David Coby earns Eagle Scout rank

Matthew David Coby, son of Mark and Merrilee Coby and a member of Troop 533 chartered by Oak Mountain Presbyterian Church and under the leadership of Scout-master Mark Clark, was recently awarded the rank of Eagle Scout by the Boy Scouts of America.

Matthew’s Scouting career began in 2010 as a first grader and Tiger Cub in Cub Pack 533. Matthew enjoyed five years in the Cub Scout Pack, completed the God and Family Program in 2014, participated in four Cub/Webelos Day Camps, competed in five Pinewood Derbies, spent the night on the USS Alabama battleship and earned the highest award in Cub Scouting, the Arrow of Light in early 2015.

Matthew crossed over to Boy Scout Troop 533 in the spring of 2015 and has been to five summer camps at Camp Sequoyah, as well as many monthly outings with the Troop that included the USS Yorktown aircraft carrier, shooting, snorkeling, deep sea fishing, hiking, canoeing, river rafting, snow skiing, camping, cooking and much more.

Matthew has served as a Quartermaster, Patrol Leader, Assistant Senior Patrol Leader and Senior Patrol Leader, and he served as a Head Chorister with the Birmingham Boys Choir from 2017-18. Matthew completed National Youth Leadership Training (NYLT) in July 2019. He is a rising junior at Oak Mountain High School and is a member of the cross-country team.

Special thanks to Oak Mountain Middle School Principal Dr. Larry Haynes for sponsoring Matthew’s Eagle Scout project to build and install five wooden benches and a lattice privacy screen around the HVAC unit next to the gym entrance.

Submitted by Merrilee Coby.