16-year-old transforms parish’s dilapidated meeting room

Aurelia “Rae” Smolen displays leadership skills beyond her years, but she uses a typical teenage term to describe the former looks of the meeting space at Our Lady of Good Counsel. 

“Icky,” the 16-year-old says, describing the state of the room before she led a refurbishment project for the space used by the Catholic Community of South Baltimore.

As part of her Eagle Scout project, Smolen directed the planning and fundraising, assembled workers and guided the work to transform a dilapidated space into a comfortable meeting room that houses several of the church’s most vital outreach programs, including everything from religious education to Alcoholics Anonymous sessions.

She gathered a crew of parishioners, who volunteered to clear the clutter, paint, assemble new shelving, organize materials and install new flooring. A coffee station was added and a restroom was refurbished with the help of a plumber.

She started with a goal of raising $4,000 for the project and wound up raising more than $8,700.

Smolen, a lifelong member of the parish and a junior at The Catholic High School of Baltimore, is a member of Troop 192 in Millersville.

John Hoffman, who has been involved in scouting leadership for more than 50 years, has served as Smolen’s Eagle Scout coach. He has been impressed with her leadership skills, especially her fundraising abilities.

“Rae is a very astute and talented girl, and she has served in her leadership roles with her troop with distinction,” said Hoffman, who also coached Rae’s older brother, Felix, through his Eagle Scout project. “Her comprehension of problems that were involved with the project and coming up with solutions was impressive.”

Troop 192 Scoutmaster Annie Medford said Rae was a founding member of her troop in 2019 after Scouts BSA admitted girls in 2018.

“She’s been a solid leader,” said Medford, who has been involved in scout leadership roles for more than 20 years. “She really helps the younger scouts. Her project is one of the bigger ones in scope, and she’s done a terrific job with recruiting and raising funds. She’s just a standout young lady in every way. The Smolen family is terrific.”

Parents Jenny and John Smolen have been members of the Catholic Community of South Baltimore for 15 years. Their son Felix’s Eagle Scout project helped spruce up the parish cemetery, and Jenny serves as the parish business manager.

It was only natural for Rae to reach out to her parish when looking to establish her Eagle Scout project.

“I feel a strong bond with my church, and wanted to help my parish community,” said Rae Smolen, who said the project grew out of a casual conversation with pastor Father Josh Laws. “We were just talking about how outdated the room was.”

Smolen said the most difficult job of the project was organizing everything and “working the kinks out” when things did not go as planned. She started the planning in June, working at least three hours a week all summer before ramping things up in August and September. Most of the hands-on work was completed Sept. 10-11.

She spoke after Masses to raise funds, putting her theater skills to good use and exceeding her goal.

Father Laws, an Eagle Scout himself, said it has been impressive to see how Rae has rallied the community around her project. He said that after her addresses following Masses her biggest problem might have been having too many volunteers for the project.

“It’s really cool to see the community rally around her project,” Father Laws said. “The space has a ton of uses and had become a little bit deteriorated and in need of rejuvenation. I know the groups that use it are going to appreciate it and we are going to have a ton more people who are drawn to it.

“Rae really stands out with her sense of confidence,” Father Laws added. “It’s impressive to see how she’s able to address a large group of people. She’s very easy to relate to and a community-builder.”

Rae Smolen said the project and scouting in general have helped her hone her leadership abilities, be more confident and strengthen her Catholic faith.

“It has really taught me patience and to have empathy for people,” said Smolen, who recently set her school’s record for the pole vault as a member of the track team, learned to scuba dive and has a passion for singing. “I think the patience and empathy has helped me be there for younger girls at Catholic High and taught me how to serve others.”

Email Gerry Jackson at gjackson@CatholicReview.org

SCOUT STUFF

• Scouts BSA, renamed from Boy Scouts of America, is open to boys and girls ages 11-17 in 2018
• Scouts focus on character development, citizenship training, leadership, and mental and physical fitness
• Some of the more popular activities scouts participate in include camping, hiking, exploring hobbies, canoeing, backpacking, exploring careers, outdoor cooking, mountain biking and community service.
• BSA was established in 1910 and since then more than 110 million Americans have participated
• Maryland has 11 scouting districts, serving more than 14,000 scouts. Many of the troops in the state are hosted by Catholic parishes.
• 512 scouts from Maryland achieved the rank of Eagle Scout in 2021
• Scouting ranks begin at Tenderfoot and progress through four other ranks (Second Class, First Class, Star and Life) before Eagle Scout. Scouts meet defined achievement goals, earning merit badges and other certificates, at each level.

Sources: baltimorebsa.org and scouting.org

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