My Scout News

John Halsey, President, BMC Executive Council, Mike Browne, and Bob Wanamaker, GBH District Advancement Chair, at the award ceremony at TL Storer in July 2009

Michael Browne, St. Agathas Troop 5 Milton, has earned two of the highest honors in Scouting: the Medal of Merit and the William T. Hornaday Badge. Browne earned these honors for his work with the environment.

Browne’s project, Get the Lead Out of Fishing (www.ReplaceLead.com) started out as his Eagle project in 2007. He discovered a little known problem – loons, swans, eagles and other raptors were being poisoned by lead fishing weights lost by anglers while fishing – and worked to change attitudes and alert anglers. He attended fishing derbies, spoke before Massachusetts legislators, and waged an aggressive public relations campaign to make people aware of the problem. His research was used to help craft Massachusetts Senate Bill 466. Browne was an invited speaker who testified before a Senate subcommittee studying the problem.

Browne receives President's Envirnomental Youth Award in 2008

Get the Lead Out of Fishing has won numerous national and international awards including the 2008 President’s Environmental Youth Award which was presented in a Rose Garden ceremony at the White House, awards and citations from the Massachusetts House and Senate, the Gloria Barron Prize, an award from the Wildlife Society, and the Champion award from the Toxic Use Reduction Institute.  Browne won the first-ever Boy Scout Heroes of Conservation Award from Field & Stream magazine. Browne’s project represented the United States at a United Nations Environmental Program, Volvo Adventure, in Gothenburg, Sweden.  Browne and 4 Scouts from his Troop traveled to Sweden to meet with teams of teens from all over the world.  In 2009, Browne received the SeaWorld Environmental Excellence award.  The Environmental Conservation and Stewardship Award of Excellence was presented by His Majesty, King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden in May 2009.  Browne was one of 10 finalists for Do-Something Award, recognizing young national leaders.  He will be featured on the back of Doritos snack food bags beginning in fall 2009.  Browne became an Eagle Scout in November 2007. 

Robert Hudson, Graham Strang, Alex Jamal, Matt Morris, and Mike Browne at Royal Palace, Stockholm, Sweden

The Medal of Merit was awarded for overcoming personal challenges while making significant contributions to the environment in his Get the Lead Out of Fishing project. To earn the William T. Hornaday Badge, Browne worked on other related environmental projects including installing a peregrine falcon nesting box on top of Quincy Medical Center. This was done to help the falcons who were displaced when the Goliath crane, a favorite nesting spot for the falcons, was dismantled at the Quincy Shipyard.

“I want to thank everyone who helped with Get the Lead Out of Fishing,” said Browne. “No project of this scope gets very far without a lot of people pitching in. In particular, I want to thank members of Troop 5 including Alex Jamal, Matt Morris, Graham Strang, and Robert Hudson who have helped since the beginning. I also want to thank my Troop leader, Mike Haviland who supported me throughout this.”

Matt Morris, Alex Jamal, Graham Strang, and Mike Browne (with Shamu) at the SeaWorld Environmental Excellence Award

Browne continues to work on Get the Lead Out of Fishing, and plans on filming a series of public service announcements to raise awareness and help get legislation passed nationwide to end this problem. He got a grant from SeaWorld to help finance these PSAs.  He plans to continue working with St. Agathas Troop 5 Milton as an Assistant Scout Leader beginning in September.

Browne is a Senior at Beacon High School and hopes to attend Olin College of Engineering, Cal-Tech, WPI, RPI, or Wentworth to study engineering in fall 2010.