E. John Reinhold

Born into a family with a tradition of scout participation, John Reinhold began his scout involvement at the age of six. He learned perseverance at an early age when he was severely injured in an accident and diagnosed with a learning disability.

As a high school student, the experience of defending two students with HIV/AIDS inspired John to develop a comprehensive community service project. Troubled by the complexities concerning the HIV/AIDS issue, he perceived that the emphasis on prevention was important. Additionally, he saw that misinformation regarding the issues was dividing the community, hurting people already suffering and causing hatred. John took the HIV/AIDS issue on as his Eagle Scout Project.

In the first phase of the project, he secured funding to acquire a teaching machine and an HIV/AIDS education and prevention program, as well as a module to teach students to avoid drugs and alcohol. During the second phase, John gained permission from his high school to have every student complete the HIV/AIDS education and alcohol modules using the teaching machine. After five months of daily follow-up, all 1,200 students had successfully completed both modules.

Hurricane Andrew forced John and his family to relocate. It also destroyed all records of his Eagle Scout Project. With a requirement to resubmit his project, John proposed to train ten key Scouts to take the project to every Scout troop in the county. John trained the Scouts, scheduled every troop and executed his plan. Over a period of six months every Scout in the South Brevard Council took the course.

John has also provided volunteer services overseas. For three summers, John earned $2,000 to pay his own way to go on service trips to Estonia, Ireland, and Zimbabwe. In Estonia, he participated with a work crew in renovating an old farmhouse to be used for a drug rehabilitation center. In Ireland, John worked with drug addicts from the project in Dublin. In Zimbabwe, he was a crew leader making mud blocks and constructing an orphanage for children whose parents died of HIV/AIDS. The work crews were under the auspices of Teen Missions International.