Harrison Stepat, from Troop 994 chartered to Hillside United Methodist Church, was recently named "Eagle Scout of the Year" by the American Legion Chapter for the state of Georgia - and helping the FBI apprehend a fugitive terrorist is only one of the reasons.

Harrison earned his Eagle Scout rank in October of 2012, and continues to serve through Scouting. He is currently one of the NYLT Course Leaders, and has served his Troop as Senior Patrol Leader.

His Eagle Project was to create collection points for flag retirement in our community and promote awareness on flag retirement etiquette. He worked with six other Boy Scout Troops in the area to create a system where the individual units would maintain, monitor, and appropriately retire flags from the community.

He was involved in the apprehension of an FBI fugitive by noticing the picture and peculiar behavior of an individual in his community. His attention to detail and alertness resulted in the FBI's arrest of a known terrorist fugitive.

In addition to Scouting, Harrison is active in his church youth ministry program and is a member of the Son of the American Legion Program where he routinely supports the efforts of Memorial Day and Veterans Day events held in our area by acting as Color Guard, Honor Guard, and performing flag retirement ceremonies.

Harrison was nominated for this honor by Legion Post 316 of South Cherokee County. He made his way through the other nominees in Region Nine before advancing to state. His name is now in the running for the National Eagle Scout of the Year award, where he is expected to be a strong contender for the title and a $10,000 scholarship.

The Atlanta Area Council congratulates Harrison on this great accomplishment.