The following bios pertain to the newest Eagle Scouts of Boy Scout Troop 719. A special ceremony to honor the five new Eagle Scouts took place in March. The designated numbers following the names refers to the Scout’s place in Troop 719’s Eagle history.
Jonathan Y. Tondo, No. 173
Eagle Scout Jonathan Tondo was born on Nov. 7, 1996 in Los Angeles to Jerry and Carol Tondo. Jonathan is currently a junior at Mira Costa High School and has an older sister, Jessica.
The following bios pertain to the newest Eagle Scouts of Boy Scout Troop 719. A special ceremony to honor the five new Eagle Scouts took place in March. The designated numbers following the names refers to the Scout’s place in Troop 719’s Eagle history.
Jonathan Y. Tondo, No. 173
Eagle Scout Jonathan Tondo was born on Nov. 7, 1996 in Los Angeles to Jerry and Carol Tondo. Jonathan is currently a junior at Mira Costa High School and has an older sister, Jessica.
Besides scouting, he is very active at his high school and in sports. He is currently the president of Young at Heart Club, a club that teaches senior citizens how to use computers. Outside of school, Tondo plays for the F.O.R Lakers.
He joined the scouts in January 2008. In 2013, he tackled the challenge of being Patrol Leader. Every challenge that was thrown at him during his patrol leadership has shaped him to be the best leader that he can be.
For his eagle project, Tondo chose to build a resource room for Faith United Methodist Church. The Church has always been a part of his life, making it the undeniable choice for his project. He built bookshelves, cleared closets, painted benches and touched up the bathroom and resource room in the Peter Chen annex. The project was successfully completed Sept. 7, 2013.
Looking back on his years in Troop 719, Tondo believes that scouting is not only preparing him for the road ahead, but has given him lifelong friends, priceless lessons and amazing experiences that “I will treasure for the rest of my life.”
Mitchell Tanaka, Eagle Scout No. 169
Eagle Scout Mitchell Tanaka was born on Jan. 30, 1996 at Torrance Memorial Medical Center to parents Paul and Karen Tanaka.
He is currently attending South High School where, for the past four years, he has been an active member of the South High School Marching Band.
After his father passed away in 2001, his Uncle Craig Yabuta moved from Idaho to act as a paternal figure. With his uncle’s encouragement, he began his scouting career in 2003 as a Cub Scout of Pack 586 and bridged over to Troop 719 in 2007. Scouting has also offered Tanaka many opportunities for exploration and adventure such as: several summer camps, visiting the Philmont Scout Ranch twice, and peaking Mount Whitney.
For his Eagle Project at the Prairie Place Adult Day Health Care Center for the mentally and physically disabled, Tanaka designed and constructed four planters fit for the use of the clients of the care center in wheelchairs. This enabled the large majority of the facility’s population to enjoy outdoor activities such as gardening. Under his direction, the project was completed with the help of more than 70 volunteers and 481 hours of hard work.
“Scouting has become a large part of my life and I do not regret it one bit,” Tanaka said. “I have made many memories and friendships that I hope to hold on to for the rest of my life. I have learned many skills that I could use to my advantage and for the benefit of others even after scouting."
Timothy M. Kubota, Eagle Scout No. 171
Eagle Scout Timothy Masahiko Kubota was born on Sept. 19, 1996, the youngest of two sons to parents, Neil and Midori Kubota. His older brother Matthew became an Eagle Scout of Troop 719 in 2006. Timothy is currently a senior at North Torrance High School and plays volleyball for North.
He began his scouting career at age 11 in 2007, and among his greatest accomplishments was to peak many mountains, around San Gorgonio Mountain, San Jacinto, Mammoth, Tooth of Time Peak in New Mexico, Haleakala on Maui, Mauna Loa on the Big Island, and Mt. Whitney.
Kubota has held various positions in the troop such as Historian, Chaplain Aide, Assistant Patrol Leader, Patrol Leader, and instructor.
In August 2012, he received the Sangha Award, the most prestigious award for Buddhist Boy Scouts.
For his Eagle Project, Kubota chose to help Lincoln Elementary School in Torrance. On April 7, 2013 he led a group of family, friends, fathers, mothers, and scouts to build a planter, repaint the lines in the kindergarten yard, sand and paint the outdoor shelves of the classrooms, and design and paint a chessboard on the playground. He said after completing the Eagle Project, that he learned how difficult it is to be a project planner and how exact everything must be.
A few of the important things he learned from obtaining the Eagle Scout rank was starting and planning projects early and good communication is the key to anything.
Derek T. Inouye, Eagle Scout No. 170
Eagle Scout Derek Inouye was born on May 28, 1996 to his parents, Wade and Juliann. His older brother Daniel is also an Eagle Scout from Troop 719. His younger brother Dale lost his life to cancer at the age of nine.
Inouye is currently a senior at North High School and is actively involved in the Associated Student Body (ASB) Leadership Program and multiple clubs. He hopes to attend UCLA or UCSD and someday become a pediatric oncologist.
Inouye played on the freshman, JV team and varsity teams at North. Inouye is a four-year varsity swimmer and enjoys playing the drums and ukulele.
One of Inouye’s most memorable times in scouting was serving as patrol leader. His leadership roles continued to Senior Patrol Leader and he was awarded the “Scout of the Year” honor in 2013.
Inouye ‘s Eagle project took place at Faith United Methodist Church, where he is currently an active member of the youth ministry. He helped design and build 5 chair racks with wheels to store 100 newly purchased chairs for the church. In addition, he spray-paint stenciled the initials of the church, “FUMC,” and placed security identification stickers on the bottom of each chair. Cleaning out and reorganizing the southwest storage unit of the church was also necessary for storage of the chair racks.
Inouye said that scouting has blessed him with many life experiences and skills. In addition, hiking provided the challenge that developed his appreciation of nature and the understanding of perseverance and pride.
Mitchell Y. Fujimura, Eagle Scout No. 172
Mitchell was born to Ross and Nancy Fujimura on July 22, 1996 at Torrance Memorial Medical Center. He is the younger of their two sons, with older brother Jonathan also an Eagle Scout. Mitchell currently attends North High School where he is involved in many school clubs.
He joined Cub Scout Pack 733 in March 2002, as a Tiger Cub. In November 2004, Fujimura joined Pack 862 and obtained the Arrow of Light Award in January 2007. At age 10, he “bridged over“ to the Boy Scouts.
Fujimurawent to many summer camps and enjoyed hiking Mt. Whitney, Yosemite, Mammoth Mountain and Hawaii’s Big Island. He attained positions as assistant patrol leader, patrol leader and he is currently the assistant senior patrol leader.
Fujimura’s Eagle Scout service project took place at Denker Elementary School in Gardena on July 20, 2013. It involved the building of nine planter boxes to be used for classroom projects and beautification of the school. He had to fill all the boxes with potting soil. The whole troop came out to complete the project and it turned out great.
Fujimura is planning to attend El Camino College, then transfer to the University of Southern California as a Biology major. He plans on going to Pharmacy School to earn his Pharmacy degree and pursue a career in the medical field.
