VALDOSTA – When it came time for Seanesee Richardson to stand and repeat the oath to become an Eagle Scout, the members of Boy Scout Troop 415 stood for him.

They took the oath for him.

Sean Richardson is unable to rise from his wheelchair. He is unable to speak.

But he can now soar with the Eagles.

Richardson received the rank of Eagle Scout Monday evening during the Troop 415 meeting at Park Avenue United Methodist Church.

The son of William and Kimberly Richardson, Sean was a Lanier County High School sophomore, a trumpet player in the school band, a Life Scout with Boy Scout Troop 415 in Valdosta.

On Dec. 12, 2016, his life changed. 

While changing a tire, a van fell on his chest. He was unable to breathe properly for nearly an hour. He suffered brain damage in the accident.

Prior to the accident, Richardson had earned all of the necessary merit badges and served the required leadership roles to earn the rank of Eagle. He had even presented the proposal to replace rotting wood and paint fences and benches around Lake Irma in Lanier County.

In May, Scoutmaster Paul Watson and Assistant Scoutmaster Stephen Findlay led the scouts of Troop 415 in following the instructions outlined in Richardson’s Eagle project at Lake Irma. Richardson was there in his wheelchair, with mom Kimberly Richardson.

The national office found that Richardson had met all of the requirements for Eagle, said Matt Hart, Alapaha Scouting District executive. When the Eagle board was held for Richardson, Josh Hatton, the troop senior patrol leader, and Alex Buckner, a former senior patrol leader, spoke for their fellow scout.

During the Eagle Court of Honor Monday, Patrick Richardson, Sean’s brother, a fellow Eagle Scout, led the invocation.

Hart spoke as the “Voice of the Eagle,” sharing the symbolic role of the Eagle throughout history and its meaning to Scouting.

Watson and Findlay presented the Eagle pin to Mrs. Richardson to pin to her son’s uniform.

Speaking for him, Mrs. Richardson said Sean wanted to join Scouts since he was a little boy. 

As a Cub Scout, he learned of the Boy Scout rank of Eagle. He told his mom he would be an Eagle Scout one day. To earn the rank of Eagle, she told him, he would have to fill some big shoes.

“But I’m proud to say,” Mrs. Richardson said, “he’s filled those shoes.”

She said Sean has been approved for a machine she hopes will allow him to communicate in the near future.

“I’m excited for him. I’m proud of him,” she said. “But I wish he could speak for himself tonight.”

Until then, Sean Richardson has his family and Scouting friends willing to speak for him and to stand for him.