Miranda Pederson/Daily News Anthony Brown, 17, of Bowling Green's Boy Scout Troop 79, digs a hole for a pathway sign as he works on his Eagle Scout project building a Prayer Path on Saturday Christ United Methodist Church.

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Anthony Brown has taken many steps on his path to becoming an Eagle Scout. As part of that process, Anthony has left a path - a literal one, for members of Christ United Methodist Church on Cave Mill Road to enjoy.

With rain and 40-degree winds blowing through the Prayer Path behind the church Saturday, the 17-year-old led about 15 younger scouts to beautify the serene walkway in the woods by pulling out the fallen brush and placing signs with Scripture to guide walkers through the winding way.

Anthony has been with Troop 79, now housed at the church, since he enrolled at W.R. McNeill Elementary School in the first grade. Now approaching graduation from Bowling Green High School, the scout said he has pushed himself to acquire the highest honor of Boy Scouts by completing an in-depth service project.

At 8 a.m., scouts were pulling out piles of debris from the trail as their black boots were undetectable from the orange-clay mud.

Flowers were planted along the trail, where Anthony had the scouts place concrete walking stones embedded with jeweled words that have inspired Anthony on his own personal journey.

“I’m using five words that have helped me in my experiences in life: love, laugh, lead, have faith, believe,” he recited quickly. “It means something to me. When I was in school and went through some anxiety, I wrote it on a bracelet. It just stuck with me because of its rhythmic pattern.”

Under Anthony’s leadership, the scouts also constructed bird houses for the trail, painted in the Boy Scouts’ traditional blue and yellow colors.

With the help of donors including Hobby Lobby, Lowe’s and Bowling Green High School, Anthony, who has been planning the project for nearly two years, will leave the path with signs of scripture, including “Though wilt show me the path of life,” from Psalm 16:11.

“This is exciting for me - I always thought I’d be one of those kids who go to scouts over the years and got so close and didn’t finish,” he said. “I have faith this can be done, and this proves it can be done.”

Twelve-year-old Ben Peterson, a scout in the same troop, said he looks up to Anthony for being “a really good scout” and said it gives him faith that he can complete the Eagle Scout level as well.

“He has a way of persuading people to do stuff he wants them to do, he’s a really good leader,” Ben said.

Holding back tears, Anthony’s mother, Nancy Brown, said she thought Saturday was “amazing” and was learning to stand back and let her son lead the way.

Brown said she has watched her son mature over the years as he participated in scouts and in the BGHS band, and said she’s sure her son will be coming back to make sure the path is maintained.

“He woke up this morning and said, ‘you think we’ll get this done?’ And I said, ‘we’ll do it,’ ” she said. “... I think the sign says it - all things are possible with God.”

Scout Master Ernie Gouvas said he has watched Anthony grow from one of the scouts planting flowers into the man organizing the large project.

“I’ve watched them go from being the little boys playing in the mud to people with purpose,” Gouvas said. “He leads by example, and I think that’s what makes a good leader.”