Flying high: Richeyville teen adds honors to portfolio
Jacob Ford, 18, son of Scott and Kathe Ford of Richeyville, stands next to some of the playground equipment he refurbished during a renovation project at Richeyville Community Playground to earn his Eagle Scout award.
Jacob Ford points to a Cecropia Moth, which is native to the Northeast, in his extensive insect collection. Jacob has won Best of Show the past five years at the Washington County Agriculatural Fair.
Jacob Ford displays a farmhouse he created from Legos that captured Best of Show at the Washington County Agricultural Fair. He plans to dismantle the house and build a new one to enter in this year’s county fair.
RICHEYVILLE – If Jacob Ford one day becomes a household name, nobody should be surprised.
The 18-year-old is a born leader, and he has the awards to prove it.
His most recent accomplishment was achieving the rank of Eagle Scout.
Jacob, son of Scott and Kathe Ford of Richeyville, is a member of Troop 1404 in California. With the help of family and friends, plus the support of Centerville Borough Council, Jacob renovated the Richeyville Community Playground.
It was no easy task. Jacob and his team removed litter from the playground area, painted the equipment in the Bethlehem-Center School District colors of blue and gold, replaced the basketball hoops, removed weeds and repaired cracks from the asphalt surface, coated the surface with asphalt sealant and painted the free-throw and three-point lines.
The crowning touch were several trees he planted around the perimeter of the playground.
“I wanted to do something that would benefit the community,” Jacob said. “The playground was abandoned, there was a basketball hoop with a bent rim and no net, and the swings and playground equipment were rusty. It was like that for long time.
“It was a really good project to undertake. I’ve noticed there are way more kids playing there.”
Jacob attended several borough council meetings, and quickly received the board’s approval. Money the borough had put aside for recreational use helped pay some of the equipment. “That was a blessing,” Jacob said.
Jacob was never at a loss for help, either. Just like he’s done – and will continue to do – for fellow Scouts, members of his troop and their parents were always there to lend a hand. He let them know the days and times he would be working, and somebody always showed up.
“I didn’t have everybody all at once, but there was enough there to help,” Jacob said.
During the project, Jacob also established a Facebook page to keep others posted about his progress. The page fostered an outpouring of stories and memories from current and former Richeyville residents about not only the playground, but also growing up in the former coal-mining community.
“It kind of spread and reunited people who had moved out of town,” said Jacob, who never imagined the Facebook page would generate such interesting stories. “It just kind of happened. It was very cool.”
Jacob has been a Scout since he was 6 years old, joining Cub Scout Pack 1515 in Centerville. In addition to earning his Eagle Scout award, Jacob also was nominated to become a member of Scouting’s elite brotherhood: Order of the Arrow. He accepted the nomination.
“Ever since I learned the ranks, I knew some day I wanted to get there,” he said. “I worked my way up to an Eagle Scout.”
Jacob also has quite a few hobbies, two of which have earned him some rather lofty honors at the Washington County Agricultural Fair.
His interest in entomology and extensive collection of insects have resulted in Best of Shows the last five years and Judge’s Choice awards at the fair, as well as his Lego models of historic farmhouses. A member of Heart & Home 4-H Club, Jacob has won numerous ribbons for his photography and woodworking entries, too.
Most of the insects in his collection are local, although he’s collected them during family vacations throughout the United States and on mission trips to Ecuador. His father also has returned from business trips with insects.
Jacob takes extreme care to preserve them, placing the insects in plastic bags and freezing them before meticulously mounting them. Each insect is precisely labeled, complete with date of collection, location and order and common name. Even entomologists at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh were impressed with his work when he consulted with them.
A tarantula from New Mexico, butterflies from Hawaii, grasshoppers from Arizona and a spider wasp and beetles from Ecuador are among the many insects in his collection.
Jacob creates his Lego farmhouses from his imagination and longtime interest in historic buildings. Each year, he dismantles his architectural gems, and starts from scratch.
“I only have so many Legos,” he laughed. “I do one for the fair, then I build a new one.”
And, again, he is very meticulous. He estimates he has about 20,000 Lego pieces, all of which are colorized. This year’s fair entry was completely furnished and included tile floors, a satellite dish, outside basement door and stairways.
Jacob attends Library Baptist Church, where he is active in the high school youth group, assists with the middle school youth program and has participated in four mission trips. He, along with his younger sisters, Hannah and Abigail, is homeschooled and is a member of the Washington County Homeschool Co-op, a homeschool enrichment program at Calvary Baptist Church in Washington.
After graduation, Jacob plans to attend college to pursue a degree in forestry that will allow him to pursue and share his passion for insects and nature.