Tyler Remphrey, a member of Atglen Boy Scout Troop 20, recently used his computer savvy to complete his Eagle Scout service project. Tyler created a digital map of the graveyard at St. John's Episcopal Church, Compass, located in Gap. Using a database that he created, the church leaders can now search the name and location of graves in the cemetery.

Tyler said the project was a good way to put his computer skills to use. "I have done a lot of computer stuff throughout my life, and my Scoutmaster, (Cory Peters), thought this project would be perfect for me," he said.

He began his project by visiting the church, which has a graveyard that dates back to the 1700s and is still used today. For years, the church kept several large paper maps and filing cabinets of papers with information on most of the graves.

"They have a lot of old (graves), including pre-Revolutionary War ones," said Tyler. "I started by asking what information they would need and how they wanted it to look, and I did research on how I could make what they wanted a reality."

Since the church has limited funds, Tyler found a suitable program on QGIS (Quantum Geographic Information System), a free service. "It's an open source, so people post information about it. It is a way to visualize data," he said. "I had to teach myself how to use the program and make the map and give the church guidance on how to use the software."

Tyler created a Google Doc and an instructional video for each job that the church needed. He also ran two in-person sessions to help teach people at the church how to use the program.

"I gave them a framework and guidance on how to use the system I made, and they filled in the information (about the graves)," he said, noting the graveyard has nearly 3,000 graves.

A team of fellow Scouts helped the church by visiting the graveyard several times and collecting information about some of the graves. The Scouts put the information into a binder so the church's cemetery group could put the details into the database.

"With an Eagle Scout project, you have to have a field work phase. A lot of the graves are newer and don't have a lot of data on them," Tyler explained. "We went out with data sheets and went through about 100 graves or so over a course of a few days, (listing) plot number, what the gravestone is made out of (and other characteristics)."

Using the database that Tyler created, the church can now search for all of the veterans' graves, search a specific name, click on a certain grave on the map and find out who is there and locate unsold graves, among other features.

Tyler's Eagle Scout Court of Honor ceremony was held on Oct. 30 at the Pomeroy Fire Company. He also received accolades from Atglen Mayor Darren Hodorovich and state Rep. Dan Williams.

Tyler, a senior at Octorara Junior-Senior High School, said he is unsure of his plans after graduation, but knows that he will pursue a career that involves computers. "Computers is a wide field and I don't know where I will wind up, but it will definitely be with a keyboard in my hand," he said.