ALAMEDA — The Meyers House hosted a flag-raising ceremony Aug. 17 to honor the Boy Scouts from Troop 78 and adult volunteers for removing a huge water storage tank on the property and restoring a flagpole.
George Gunn, curator of the Alameda Museum, had approached volunteer Carl Ramos about the tank and flagpole. Ramos then contacted Assistant Scoutmaster Steve Ramos, who involved Boy Scout Troop 78, which is chartered through St. Philip Neri Church.
Carl Ramos and his grandsons, Nathan, Zach and Ian Ramos, restored the flagpole. Work on removing the water storage tank from the Carriage House of the Meyers House began in July 2013 and was completed in November 2013.
Working in pairs, the Scouts took shifts using a torch to cut the tank into small pieces for removal. The tank was heavily rusted on the inside, which made the task more difficult.
The Scouts who took part in the tank removal project were: Harry Sims, Armen Phelps, Liam Olson. James Ensminger, Luke Olson, Brendan Ijor, Marco Cazares, Nathan Ramos, Zach Ramos, Ian Ramos and Ben Krainer.
The adult Scout leaders who led the group were Assistant Scoutmaster Steve Ramos, Scoutmaster Rick Jones and assistant Scoutmaster Alex Jones.
When the task was completed, the Scouts took 2,120 pounds of scrap metal and received $238.50 from DC Metal.
The tank was removed from the Carriage House to provide a meeting room for educational purposes and to create a space that caterers could use to prepare and stage food for weddings and other events at the Meyers House.
On Aug. 17, the Boy Scouts from Troop 78 had the honor of being the color guard at the flag-raising ceremony. Those in attendance included Mayor Marie Gilmore, former Alameda City Council Member Frank Matarrese, members of the police and fire departments, volunteers and members of the Meyers House committee.
Assistant Senior Patrol Leader Zach Ramos called the color guard — Eric Linderme, Nathan Ramos, Ian Dougherty, Jack Wilhelm and Ben Krainer. Also in attendance were Scouts James Ensminger, Landon Chan, Will Stuhlreyer, Ian Ramos, Liam Olson, Michael Schmidt and Aidan Olson.
Assistant Scoutmaster Steve Ramos praised the Scouts for their hard work and invited Scoutmaster Rick Jones to present a check to Judith Lynch, Alameda Museum president volunteer.
The troop decided to donate the money back to the museum.
“This way, our scouts can earn service hours, get the chance to use some interesting equipment and help out our community,” Steve Ramos said.
The Meyers House and Garden is owned and operated by volunteers from the Alameda Museum. It is at 2021 Alameda Ave. The Meyers House is open from 1 to 4 p.m. on every second and fourth Saturday of the month. Admission is $5. For more information, call 510-521-1247.