EVENT ALSO HONORED BARBARA LEWIS WITH SCOUTING'S NORTH STAR AWARD
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 3, 2025
For more information:
Alison Harrison, Marketing and Communications Director
James Parnell, Scout Executive
Photo credit: Ramone Photography
Virginia Beach, Va. – Sixteen young women who have earned the rank of Eagle Scout in Scouting America Tidewater Council were honored at the third annual Examples of Success dinner on Wednesday, February 26, 2025. In addition, Tidewater Council recognized local business leader Barbara Lewis that evening with a brand-new volunteer award from Scouting America.
The event, sponsored by ABNB Federal Credit Union, was held at 6:00 PM in the Town Center City Club, 222 Central Park Avenue, Suite 230, in Virginia Beach. Town Center City Club founder Barbara Lewis hosted the event.
These 16 Eagle Scouts are among a growing group of local young women to earn the highest rank in the Scouts BSA program. They are among the first 35 females to earn the Eagle Scout rank in Tidewater Council since the inaugural class of seven earned the award on February 8, 2021, the 110th anniversary year of Scouting America Tidewater Council. Eagle Scout rank requirements are the same for girls and boys.
Kathryn Elliott, a retired captain in the United States Navy, was the featured speaker at the event. She served as a Naval Flight Surgeon and Surface Warfare Medical Officer. Among her career highlights were tours as executive officer (2016-2018) and later commanding officer (2021-2023) of the USNS Comfort Medical Treatment Facility. She has been a Tidewater Council board member since 2023.
Two young women also spoke at the event, including one of the Eagle Scouts being honored. Anwen Sheedy is an Eagle Scout from Virginia Beach and a first-year Old Dominion University student. She recently served as Youth Course Lead for Tidewater Council’s National Youth Leadership Training and is currently a Council of Chiefs member of the Order of the Arrow’s Blue Heron Lodge. Anwen is a member of Venturing Crew 490, chartered by St. Gregory the Great Catholic Church in Virginia Beach.
The other youth speaker was Sayla Kuch. She is a first-year Entrepreneurship & Business Academy student at Kempsville High School. Sayla has represented her school at district and regional swimming meets and is training for the Senior Championship with the Senior Gold Team at Tide Swimming. She is a member of Scouts BSA Troop 19 in Virginia Beach, chartered by Kempsville Ruritan Club.
Barbara Lewis was honored during the event with a brand-new Scouting award. The North Star Award is a high-level award for non-registered community members who have made a significant contribution to Scouting. Andrea Kilmer, CEO of The Garcia Companies and its affiliate businesses, presented the award on behalf of the Scouting America National Court of Honor.
This award is on the same level as Scouting America’s Silver Beaver Award, which recognizes registered Scouters for their distinguished service. The North Star Award’s purpose is to recognize non-Scouters.
Barbara has been instrumental in advancing and promoting girls in Scouts BSA by creating and hosting the Examples of Success event in Tidewater Council for the past three years, highlighting the accomplishments of female Eagle Scouts and introducing them to local women business professionals.
About Scouting America Tidewater Council
Tidewater Council is the 5th oldest Scouting America council in the United States, established in 1911. Today, the council serves approximately 4,000 youth and 1,700 adult volunteers in the Virginia cities of Chesapeake, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Virginia Beach, and the North Carolina counties of Camden, Chowan, Currituck, Dare, Gates, Pasquotank, and Perquimans.
To learn more about Tidewater Council or to sign your child up for Scouting, visit TidewaterBSA.com, email james.parnell@scouting.org, or call 757-497-2688.
About Scouting America
Scouting America provides the nation’s foremost youth program of character development and values-based leadership training, which helps young people be “Prepared. For Life.®”
Scouting America welcomes all of America’s youth into its programs. Scouting aims to give them fantastic experiences in the outdoors, and elsewhere, where they can grow in a safe environment. More than 130 million Americans have participated in Scouting’s programs since its founding. Today, more than one million youth are served by 477,000 dedicated adult volunteers in local councils nationwide.
To learn more about Scouting America’s mission, visit Scouting.org.
About ABNB Federal Credit Union
The credit union began as NavPhiBase Federal Credit Union in 1960 with eight members and $40 in deposits. Today, ABNB Federal Credit Union celebrates more than 60 years of serving members. As a member-owned financial institution, ABNB has grown to over 78,000 members, has over $780 million in assets, and is a regional financial institution serving members in Greater Hampton Roads and Northeastern North Carolina through the Outer Banks.
ABNB Federal Credit Union has a long and storied history of charitable giving and community involvement dating back to the credit union’s founding in 1960. With a commitment to making a difference in our communities, the ABNB Community Foundation was launched in 2019 to support causes and charities benefiting children and families in our region.
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