Eagle Scout project yields slingshot range at Camp Kapaun

Eucharistic adoration and Ninjas.

It’s tough to narrow down the best experiences Bishop Carroll Catholic High School sophomore Holden Dible has enjoyed over the years at Camp Totus Tuus, but those two definitely make the short list. 

“The last day of camp has some of the best adorations I have ever been to,” he said. “And most nights at the camp, we play a game called Ninjas, where we basically all run around in the dark.”

According to his parents, Amy and Tracy Dible, Camp Totus Tuus is itself on the shortest of short lists for Holden and his siblings, Madisyn (who is now a student at Kansas State University) and Graeden, an eighth grader at Wichita’s St. Catherine of Siena Catholic School. 

“If I told all three of my kids, ‘You can do only one thing in the summer, they would pick Camp Totus Tuus over any other camp, vacation, or activity,” Amy said. “Madisyn has been hired as a counselor for this coming summer.”

So when Holden began kicking around possible projects that would be part of his pursuit of elite Eagle Scout status, contributing something to Camp Totus Tuus seemed an inspired choice, especially since it had recently landed a long-term home at the Diocese of Wichita’s recently-established Camp Kapaun.

“When I learned the diocese purchased the grounds, I thought ‘They’re probably trying to get their own stuff out there,” Holden said. “We reached out and asked if there was anything we could do.”

And that is how the Shepherd’s Shot slingshot range at Camp Kapaun came to be.

Learn by doing

“Eagle Scout is the highest rank attainable in the Scouts BSA program of Scouting America,” explains Wikipedia. “Since its inception in 1911, only 4% of scouts have earned this rank after a lengthy review process.”

The achievement is well-recognized as a mark of leadership, tenacity, strong character, and other positive attributes, Amy observes. “I have worked in higher education and have experience on scholarship boards, foundations, and such,” she said. “I saw that Holden only needed to obtain a couple more merit badges, complete his Eagle Scout project, and he’d be there, so I strongly encouraged it.”

Along with other specific thresholds aspiring Eagle Scouts must clear, the Boy Scout Handbook explains, they must attain BSA’s second-highest rank of Life Scout and then “plan, develop, and give leadership to others in a service project helpful to any religious institution, any school, or your community . . . other than the Boy Scouts of America.”

Conversations with Patrick Carney, who serves as Camp Kapaun’s chief groundskeeper, and Anthony Keiser, whose titles include directing both Camp Kapaun and Totus Tuus, raised the possibility of a slingshot range. Holden was intrigued. 

“I have always liked slingshots, but have never really had anywhere to shoot them,” he said. “It also hits the scout vibe of getting outdoors beyond what you can do in your yard or at a normal playground.”

Keiser provided a photograph of a target structure that fit the general template, but expressed hope that Camp Kapaun’s range could accommodate greater numbers. Tracy, with his education and experience as an engineer, helped with the plan. Camp Kapaun underwrote the building materials.

“Anthony wanted more people to be able to shoot at the same time, so we scaled it up,” Tracy said. “I talked to some structural engineers at work about the size of the posts, how deep they should be buried, stuff like that. From there, Holden and I worked out the plan.”

The undertaking was a far cry from the sort of projects on which they collaborated during Holden’s Cub Scout days. “Pinewood Derby cars are parent-led,” Tracy said. “Holden led this project.”

That oversight extended to a broader team that not only included his brother, Graeden, but also some other fellow scouts. Some crew members joined him in the Dible garage to assemble portions that could be transported to the site. On one such occasion, Holden recounts, friend and crew member Isaac Hushka took his role as a subordinate so seriously that he refused to let Holden carry an end of some long pieces of lumber they were buying. 

“I kept asking if he wanted help as he shuffled his way all the way through Menard’s and out to his truck,” Holden laughs. “He didn’t even use a cart.”

Other scounts and some family often joined the Dibles for construction trips to Camp Kapaun, which is about an hour’s drive from the family’s West Wichita home. 

“We took a different group each time, but between three and five people usually came along,” he said. “I could not have done it without them.”

Aside from following Holden’s instructions, Tracy said he mainly served as the on-site adult. “My job was mostly to make sure everyone was safe,” he said. “I definitely shared my building experiences with Holden, but for the most part, he had the right ideas and led us down the right path.”

Amy’s professional experience includes event planning, but she also left it to their son to conduct the small symphony of overseeing a work crew. Even so, she acknowledged, it didn’t hurt to ask a few questions. She mentions the example of seeing Holden start to pack crew lunches. 

“I asked if anybody had allergies,” she said. “He didn’t know, but then he asked. It was all a really great learning opportunity.”

There were still glitches, Holden acknowledges. Although scouts cannot use power saws on an Eagle Scout project, there is no such ban for adult crew members such as Tracy. A generator malfunction then complicated that plan, Holden says, but he decided they would measure and mark boards in large groups before transporting them to a camp building with power for cutting, and then haul them back.

On one occasion, simply marking the boards became a challenge when the crew of seven discovered it had only two pencils. Amy admits the realization initially flustered her, but Holden remained unflappable. “Holden is so easygoing,” she said, “He was like ‘It’s fine, we’ll just share.’”

“I like to keep a good attitude,” Holden said. “There have been quite a few frustrations and I could have gotten angry, but staying positive helps me, and I hope it helps the people around me.”

Leaving a mark

Heading a construction project that is intended to be the first in a series of target ranges – other possibilities include archery and BB guns – has helped Holden better appreciate carpentry and woodworking, he acknowledges. “It’s really fun,” he said. “Now I’m in a class at Carroll where we do that.” 

Of course, tackling the project with his family and fellow scouts has also been a big part of the fun, he continues, but some of the joys have been unanticipated. He cites the example of searching an antique mall for items to adorn the structure.

“My favorite part was probably finding the decorations,” he said. “I’m not usually a big shopper, but it was fun walking around and looking for rusty old pots, pans, lanterns, and all the stuff we could put up for people to shoot at.”

As the project neared completion, Amy raised another question: What did Holden want to name the project? Their conversations kept returning to someone known for skill with a shepherd’s sling. Before he was king of Israel, 1 Samuel 17 recounts how the shepherd David defeated the imposing Philistine champion Goliath. That inspired the name “Shepherd’s Shot,” even if the diocese will provide campers with clay pellets instead of riverbed stones.

Tying it back to the Bible is particularly satisfying for Holden, who credits Camp Totus Tuus as a significant milestone in his faith journey. “I made a lot of friends,” he said. “It also helped my prayer life . . . and sparked more interest in our faith.”

Other prospective Eagle Scouts may one day construct Camp Kapaun’s other planned target ranges, but Holden is happy to consider that he has helped build up a place that is important in his own formation. “I left my mark,” he said. “When I go out there, no matter how old I am, I can say ‘I did that,’ and hopefully get to see people having fun with it.”