By EMILY SPARACINO / Staff Writer

COLUMBIANA – Dozens of current and former Boy Scouts and Eagle Scouts were recognized at the 2016 Columbiana Mayor’s Breakfast for the Greater Alabama Council Boy Scouts of America Shelby District on April 25 at Columbiana United Methodist Church.

First, three Columbiana men and Eagle Scouts were honored for their lifetime service to the community through Scouting.

James “Jim” Marshall, Neal Farmer and the late Jimmy Davis received special recognition called the Heart of an Eagle Award for having “lived their lives by the Scout Oath and Law.”

Eagle Scouts A.J. Cole, Josh Davis and Ryan Harmon presented to Marshall, Farmer and Davis’s family their awards.

Marshall was in Scouting in Troop 26 in Wylam, where he was in the Order of the Arrow and earned his Eagle and one Silver Palm.

Marshall also was a summer camp counselor with Camp Arrowhead for four years.

Farmer joined Boy Scout Troop 71, led by Scoutmaster Cecil Shanks, who was the dean of Tusculum College.

Farmer was tapped out for the Order of the Arrow and earned his Eagle when he was 16 years old. Eventually, Farmer became an assistant scoutmaster to his former troop and helped form an Explorer Post focused on aviation.

Davis earned the rank of Eagle Scout in 1942 in Sylacauga and was a committeeman for Boy Scout Troop 560.

The guest speaker was Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Lee Price, who has over 38 years of experience leading military and government organizations.

Price assisted with the establishment of the commercial communications system during Desert Shield and Desert Storm for the joint forces in Saudi Arabia, and in 2003, Price was involved in a major project to provide the same to Afghanistan, Iraq, Kuwait and Qatar.

As a lieutenant colonel, Price established the largest Command and Control system within the Department of Defense. She served as the Army’s first Program Executive Officer and was charged with the Army’s Chief of Staff’s No. 1 priority of upgrading the tactical network.

Price has earned numerous military awards including the Army Distinguished Service Medal, the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star and the Combat Action Badge.

Price was the 21st woman promoted to Major General, and only eight women have been promoted higher than two-star General.

The breakfast also served as a fundraising opportunity. Individual and corporate donations were accepted and tallied before the program’s conclusion.

“It’s a good day for Scouting in Columbiana,” Mayor Stancil Handley said. “We raised $6,065 this morning for the Scouts.”