Boy Scouts celebrate 100 years of service

From the 12 scouts in Britain in 1909 to the 4.1 million scouts and 1.5 million volunteers leading the way in 2010, 100 years of scouting in America has seen leaders, not only locally but nationally as well, continue to set the example in the nation's top youth-service organization.

Locally, scouting is on the upswing, according to Greg Brown, district executive for the Susquehanna Council of the Boy Scouts of America, Williamsport.

"Nationally, our numbers are decreasing, but in our area, we are thriving, receiving two percent growth on our troops," Brown said.

When asked about the secret to their success, Brown pointed to the men and women showing the youngsters the right way.

"We can't say enough about our volunteers, the people who are dedicated to the program. A program that meets the demands of youth today."

One such local troop that follows that trend is Troop 250, based out of the Clark's Grove United Methodist Church in Paxinos.

One of the first troops to be incorporated, Troop 250 is responsible for one of the area's most religious traditions, the Easter service at "The Old Rugged Cross" in the Paxinos Mountain.

At the 2009 service, Marlin Reigel, one of the original 11 scouts who helped to construct the cross and raise it for the first time in 1961, spoke about scouting and the dear friends he has made through the activity. He was proud to see how today's scouts have kept it alive, from reconstructing the cross in 1986, to improving the site and the road leading to it.

Certainly scouting has come a long way from the days of tying knots and camping.

"That is still part of scouting the rope tying and the camping, it is part of our focus," Brown said. "A big part of that today is getting our scouts and youth outdoors and educating them on the conservation of the earth."

Nationally, Boy Scouts of America took a big step for that with the implementation of their 100th Anniversary Tree program.

The Arbor Day Foundation designated the Chitalpa tree as the Boy Scouts 100th Anniversary Tree as part of scouting's Generations Connection program, making the tree a symbol of families have grown better and stronger because of scouting.

For every tree ordered from the Arbor Day Foundation, a matching tree is donated to the newly designated BSA Centennial Forest, which will aid replanting in the Flathead National Forest in Montana destroyed by recent fires.

In addition, the council's camping area, Camp Karoondinha, near Glen Iron, has recently added a High Adventure ropes course, which is not only available for scouts, but can be rented out for corporate group events.

"We are trying to give the youth what they are into today, like backpacking, skiing, anything that makes them active and outdoors," Brown said.

While the official 100th anniversary of Boy Scouts of America is Feb. 8, 2010, the celebration of the annual Jamboree is scheduled for July 26 through Aug. 4 at A.P. Hill, Va.

Clark's Grove will be a part of the historic celebration, not only visiting the event along with hundreds of thousands of other scouts and scouters, but will also have two representatives working at the event.

Eagle Scout Dave Stefanovige will be working as security at the event, while scout Adam Richardson will be part of a patrol made up of scouts from several councils.

"While in Virginia, we have plans of visiting Arlington National Cemetery and Busch Gardens. We would like to thank everyone from Clarks Grove UMC, the community, our committee and family and friends for all their help and support," said Troop 250 Scoutmaster Mike Shevitski.

The troop is also looking to preserve a little history of their own as well.

"We are looking for any information, photos, letters, notes, cards, books, uniforms or any other memorabilia you'd be willing to share with us." Shevitski said. "If you were a Eagle Scout from Troop 49 or 250, we want to know about it, because the troop wants to put together something to recognize your accomplishments and service."

Those who want to help can contact Shevitski at 648-2129 or Assistant Scoutmaster Dave Stefanovige at 898-9353.

While a 100-year celebration includes a lot of history, Clark's Grove is getting the next generation of scouts ready as the troop recently reformed Cub Scout Pack 3250 in January.

Anyone interested in learning more about scouting orfinding a local troop in their area can call the Susquehanna Council at 326-5121 or visit www.susquehannabsa.org.

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