There’s a long legacy of Eagle Scouts in the Martin family.

That roughly 65-year legacy continued Saturday, as 17-year-old Sam Martin joined the ranks of his brothers Graham, James and Win, his father Jay, his uncle John Edmiston, his grandfather “Big Jim” and his great-uncle John Martin.

Becoming an Eagle Scout is about honor, giving back to the community and hard work. Those values have been instilled in the Martin boys at home and through Boy Scouts of America. Eagle Scout rank is the highest in the Boy Scouts program.

“For the Eagle Scout rank, you have to do a service project, and I knew what I wanted to do for mine pretty early on in my journey,” Sam Martin said. “When First Christian Church burned down, something that I always remembered about the church beforehand was the paintings on the wall.”

Martin crafted two paintings: one featuring the nativity scene and the other organized similar to a pinwheel, with 12 pictorial representations of stories from the Bible.

“I wanted to replace or at least kind of fill the hole where those paintings had been,” Martin explained.

Jay Martin said his sons all had different ideas on what they wanted to pursue as a service project. Graham added to the playground at Purpose of God Annex Outreach Center, James created a promotional video for Purpose of God, and Win designed a wayside sign on Stewart Parkway, he said.

“Sam and all his brothers wore their grandfather’s ‘neckerchief,’ which he attained in 1950 at the Boy Scout national jamboree in Valley Forge … which features Gen. George Washington kneeling in prayer,” Martin said. “We all have valued this treasured relic as it represents family heritage, national thanksgiving and local ties since we live in the original Washington, as well as the spiritual connectivity of a president in prayer.”

Sam Martin said his family’s Eagle Scout legacy was a big motivator behind attaining the rank himself — not to mention adding a little bit of pressure to do so.

“It’s kind of always been something that I’ve done and a part of my life,” he said. “For most of it, my brothers were there with me.”

Saturday was undoubtedly a special day for the Martins. Three generations of Martins were able to come together to support Sam at his Eagle Scout ceremony, which speaks to their strong family bond.

Sam Martin said he would like to one day encourage his own children to pursue an Eagle Scout rank, adding yet another generation to the legacy.

“I think the most important lesson that I’ve learned from Scouts is the virtue of hard work,” Martin said. “Now that I’ve achieved (Eagle Scout), it’s really great to be part of the ranks of this prestigious group that my family has all been a part of, and I’m just really proud of it.”