ROSEMOUNT SCOUT EARNS EVERY MERIT BADGE
GABE ANDERSON OF TROOP 270
For most Scouts, earning the 21 merit badges to become an Eagle Scout is challenge enough. But for Gabe Anderson of Troop 270 in Rosemount, it was just the beginning.
“When I first joined, I read an article about another Scout who earned every merit badge. I said, ‘I want to do that.’” After years of work, he did exactly that, earning all 137 available merit badges.
A senior at Rosemount High School, Gabe started his Scout journey as a Bear in Cub Scouts. The first badge he earned was Fingerprinting. It wasn’t long until he earned Eagle Scout, days before his 14th birthday.
“Gabe leads by example. Our Scouts look up to Gabe as what an Eagle Scout should be,” said Gabe’s Scoutmaster Greg Schultz. His Eagle project represents that eagerness to help others, too, when he built 45 field desks for a school in Eagan.
At 14, Gabe’s adventures were really just starting though. He’s been to all four High Adventure Bases. He earned the 50 miler award at both hiking at Philmont and canoeing at Northern Tier, taking challenging routes at both locations. His favorite was Florida Sea Base, and who can blame him? Spending time on the ocean and sleeping a night on a floating raft sounds like a lot of fun.
FINISHING HIS GOAL
136 badges later, the last one to earn was Farm Mechanics. After spending what seemed like forever searching, Gabe wants to thank Mr. Weber for stepping up and becoming a Merit Badge Counselor, helping him earn his 137th and final badge.
Gabe’s family said it took a lot of motivation to finish, something Gabe has an abundance of.
“We told him, if you’re serious, we’ll help you. We actually planned some road trips around his requirements. It was fun, because we got to participate,” Gabe’s mother, Mickie said.
“He has these badges that enrich all our lives,” added Wade, Gabe’s father. “It was fun to see, I remember welding. Who else gets to learn that?”
That’s something most Scouts get to say at some point. They’ll get the opportunity to learn something very few people do at their age. An Order of the Arrow Member, National Order of the Arrow Conference and 2013 National Jamboree participant, Gabe has hit almost every high point a Scout can.
Scuba diving was his most memorable though. “I realized it was the most fun thing I’d ever done,” Gabe said.