Northern Star Eagle Awarded Top National Scholarship
Luke Gentle Receives the $48,000 Mabel and Lawrence S. Cooke Scholarship
Congratulations to Luke Gentle of Troop 582 and Crew 188 of St.
Michael Minnesota! He was selected for the National Eagle Scout
Association’s largest scholarship, established by Lawrence S. Cooke in
memory of his late wife, Mabel, which provides $48,000 (up to $12,000
each year) for college. Only one scholarship is awarded annually.
Luke will attend Drake University this fall, majoring in Computer
Science and Data Analytics. This scholarship recognizes his incredible
academic, extracurricular and Scouting accomplishments.
Luke said: “I was shocked, as I really didn’t expect to win, but am
so extremely grateful! It will have a huge impact on my future, as did
Scouting.” When asked about some of those benefits he responded:
“Through Scouting, I’ve been able to meet new people, make new friends
and gain valuable leadership skills that are hard to learn anywhere
else. I’ve also gained important life skills such as first aid and a
commitment to service.”
A favorite among many of those service opportunities was assisting
with his brother’s Eagle project, building ramps for a service dog
facility. Luke has been a leader in his troop and crew, as well as in
the Order of the Arrow, Scouting’s honor society of service. He has
held many leadership positions in both his Northern Lights Chapter, as
well as the Totanhan Nakaha Lodge, where he serves as Executive Vice
Chief and is a Vigil Member.
Other Scouting highlights include attending the 100th Anniversary
National Order of the Arrow Conference, serving as a member of the Crew
188 Ceremonies Team for Cub to Scout crossovers and OA inductions, as
well as camping with his troop at Many Point every summer.
Luke has earned 18 Eagle Palms and 111 merit badges. He was also
awarded a Northern Star Council $1,000 Eagle Scout Scholarship in
2018.
Among many accomplishments as a student at Rogers High School, Luke
has been a member of the National Honor Society, the Phi Theta Kappa
Honor Society, as well as on the Dean’s List at Anoka-Ramsey Community
College. He earned Academic Letters all four years and formed a team
for Knowledge Bowl, where he served as Team Captain, lettered and made
All Conference. He also enjoyed time as a staff write and web editor at The Campus Eye, a newspaper at Anoka-Ramsey. Luke was the President of the Computer Science Club and chosen as the Outstanding Student of the Year in Computer Science. Luke also helped other students, serving as an academic
tutor for chemistry, pre-calculus, calculus and computer science at
Anoka Ramsey Community College, all while maintaining a 4.0 GPA at both Anoka-Ramsey and Rogers High School.
We extend a Scout salute Luke and are proud to have him represent
our council. Check out these photos that chronicle some of the fun and
adventure of Luke’s Scouting journey.