*Photos by Paul W. Wang • Click on photos above to enlarge.

By: Katherine Massopust

PERTH AMBOY – On Sunday, May 7, 2017 at St. John the Baptist Orthodox Church, Stephen R. Skokan completed his Eagle Scout project which was to renovate the Church Library. Stephen stated he chose this project because every orthodox church is required to have a library, but St. John’s was not up to par. So, for his Eagle Scout Project he decided to renovate the library which is located in a room underneath the church. Stephen proposed his project to his Scoutmaster, George Agin, who along with the Boy Scouts, liked the idea.

Stephen felt that it would benefit the church to have an organized library. “The purpose of the project was to establish and develop a working library for the church, which will provide parishioners with easy access to books, materials, and information relating to the Orthodox faith and ethnicity.”

With the help of 22 people, it took 115 man hours to complete this project (taking around a total of 2 years). Stephen began his journey by learning about leadership and life skills. “It’s important when dealing with people to be organized and communicate your point well with having a clean message and guiding people instead of just barking orders. The hardest thing about the project was the church being away from where I live (the commute). That is where I learned to be patient. Filling out paperwork can also be tedious.”

The project entailed replacing the carpet which was donated by a local business. The room was painted inside. “We built a display with a kiosk, and laminated historic documents with the help of parishioners and fellow scouts. The room already had book shelves  but they needed to be fixed and cleaned. The lighting was changed. We cleaned off the tables. Someone donated an oak desk which we put in the library. There is a part of the library that is a museum which has historical articles. There are artifacts on display at the kiosk. We hung pictures. Some of the articles were laminated and hung on the wall. My sister, Katie painted a welcome sign which now hangs over the entrance to the library,” Stephen stated.

Stephen continued, “The library is open to parishioners, students and Sunday School students. We were able to obtain over 400 books that are religious based on the Orthodox Faith. We got books from my Church and other Churches. We also asked for donations. Bishop Gregory donated some books. We incorporated a drop off and donation box at the display kiosk for future books and magazines.”

When asked who was his role model, Stephen answered, “My father, Dr. Stephen Skokan, is always on top of things. He is very open minded. He is very detailed and goes the extra mile. He’s a doctor and interacts with people really nice. I look up to him.”

Stephen is in Scout Troop#61, Stafford Township, Manahawkin, New Jersey. His awards include the prestigious Chi-Rho Award in 5^th Grade and the Alpha-Omega award in 7^th Grade. To receive the Chi-Rho Award, Stephen studied his patron Saint – Saint Stephen. To receive the Alpha-Omega award, Stephen expanded his knowledge of the Orthodox Church by reading all 4 Gospels and studying the saints, especially the 4 Evangelists of the Gospel.

St. John’s is the oldest Church in the American Carpathian-Russian Orthodox Diocese in the United States. The Church is celebrating its 120^th Anniversary this September.

Stephen is an altar boy at his church and he is also in the Order of the Arrow, Scouting’s Honor Society.

Congratulations on a job well done!