Another of the many wonderful outreach and education missions Saint Mark sponsors is scouting. Troop 226 has been in existence nearly 40 years (that we know about-maybe even longer than that!) The walls hold the plaques that testify to the numerous Eagles produced, as well as memorabilia from the many exciting excursions taken over the years. Membership is about 24 scouts, plus a half dozen or so active, registered, experienced adult leaders and Troop Committee members. Troop 226 meets every Monday night at 7:00 p.m. (unless it’s a school holiday) in the Scout Hut behind the new addition. You are all welcome any time to come and join in, check us out, & see what fun we have. We always have special projects and events in the works, so we’ll gladly find a job for you….or not. If you have interest in serving on our Troop Committee, we are looking for some new members. If you have a particular area of expertise, you might consider serving as a merit badge counselor. Or if you would just like to drop in and share a skill, hobby, or story we’d love to have you. Thanks for all your support and for a great year.
2009
We stay very busy learning and having fun. We try to go and do something at least once a month & often it’s more than that. Throughout this past year we’ve surely had some adventures.
Thanks to the coordination efforts of valued Troop Committee Member Mr. Van Fair, we took a large group of both Boy and Cub Scouts to visit Patriot’s Point in Charleston. We spent two nights aboard the USS Yorktown, toured a Coast Guard Cutter and a submarine anchored nearby, and took a boat ride out to Ft. Sumter where we did some more exploring. Thirteen boys attended God & Country training conducted by Pastor Jeff, and are working on their projects to finish that award.
In January we provided the Color Guard for the Oconee District Scout Leader Recognition Banquet. Mid-month we conducted our annual cold weather campout. Have you ever held a 5 foot icicle? It was chilly in Panthertown Valley, as it always is in January-about 25 degrees when we hit the trail midday Saturday!
On February 1st, in honor of Scout Month, we held our annual Scout Sunday Fundraiser luncheon. It was a huge success, thanks to all of you who supported us. That money was used to help boys pay for their trips, fees, summer camp, and for troop tents and equipment, including new American and state flags. Thank you SOOO much.
On the 7th we conducted “Scouting for Food”, which raised about 1800 pounds of food for the Golden Corner Food Bank. The previous year we did this event (gathering over one ton of food), plus teamed up with Bi-lo on another, and helped earn over a thousand dollars for the same food bank.
On the last Saturday of February, Mr. Van Fair taught 4 boys Radio Merit Badge, and has a few more who want to learn that skill. They talked to people all over the world on his HAM radio. Mr. Van also procured a new U.S. flag, which was flown over the Capital, and which we hope to soon fly proudly over the Scout Hut. Thank you, Mr. Van.
In March we did a little spring cleaning around the Hut.
A few weeks later we conducted a ‘survivor man’ campout. There boys worked on their map & compass, first aid, wilderness survival and cooking skills. They built and slept in home-made shelters, prepared food in and on the fire such as rice in bamboo stalks, chicken stew, and Dutch oven breads & pies.
Our April Suwannee River trip didn’t ‘float’ this year due to the timing of spring break, but the year before we took 18 people in 9 canoes, paddled 53 miles in 3 days and had a ball.
Later in the month however we did camp and hike, along with Cub Scout Pack 31, at Chau Ram Park and gained several new Scouts at the Crossing Over Ceremony. In May we participated in the Council Exploree in Anderson, which was a gathering of hundreds of area Scouts for fun & games.
As you know, the rank of Eagle is scouting's highest achievement. Unfortunately not all who enter scouting are able to reach this level. It is definitely an accomplishment of great pride and honor. Even though a relatively small unit, Troop 226 produced 5 Eagles in 2006 and 3 in 2007, & has three more who are now very close, having completed their Eagle Projects this summer. One Scout has completed his board of review, another will have his in the next few weeks, and the third will have his in the near future as well. In May, under planning and coordination of Life Scout Perry Rogers, we replaced a bridge/stairway on the Foothills Trail below Whitewater Falls, which satisfied his requirement. Soon after, we helped another young man from a sister troop on his Eagle project, which was the marking of hiking trail along the old Blue Ridge Railroad route, near the Stumphouse tunnels. We had no idea how far along the early nineteenth century railroaders had progressed before stopping. The engineering of those tunnels, cuts & fills was truly awesome. Next, Jesse Patterson coordinated another Foothills Trail improvement. We replaced an approximate 20 foot section of steep steps down by the river for his Eagle project. We also participated in two river sweeps the previous fall, on both Chattooga and Chauga Rivers, the latter of which in conjunction with a ‘bike’ campout nearby.
Life Scout Kyle Rogers led the way on a beautification and landscaping project in the Hospice, Collins Home area to satisfy his Eagle project requirement. All of these are wonderful contributions to the betterment of lives of folks in our community. Good Job. We have had good Scout Camp participation the last several years. In late July we had a cabin full of boys at Camp Old Indian, several of whom were nominated by their peers and earned the Order of the Arrow, an honor society among Scouts. While there, Scouts helped replace a monument and conduct a memorial service to Seneca Boy Scout & former church member Mr. Webb Hunt Daniel, killed in action in North Africa, March 30, 1943. As a result of camp attendance and steady training efforts, we presented over 50 rank advancements, awards, and achievements at our September Court of Honor.
Thanks go to Bob, Lynn, & Andy Stein who hosted a fine back-to-school cookout, swimming, ice cream social. A couple of weeks later we took an end-of-the-summer float trip down the Chattahoochee, and enjoyed the local water park.
Bob, Lynn, & Andy also hosted our first “Friday Night Lights” campout. In Lynn’s Uncle Dean Davis’ troop we used to camp at his place and go to the ball games. We thought we’d try it, and it turned out very well. Typical of many Scout events, the rain poured, and it got somewhat muddy, but spirits were not dampened; it was lots of fun, nonetheless--and Seneca won.
We love to backpack, especially in the mountains in the fall and spring of the year. We’ve gone to Lick Log Creek, & Ellicott’s Rock along the Chattooga, and recently hiked a portion of the Appalachian Trail and camped near Siler’s Bald, above Franklin. After all that walking & trail food, breakfast at the Dillard House was terrific.
Currently we are assembling 60 gift bags for our annual Lila Doyle cheer-spreading, carol-singing trek, and we plan to ride our ‘mobile campsite’ in Seneca’s Christmas Parade. After that but before Christmas, we’ll assemble one more time for a short leader training session for the newly elected, and do our long range plan for the 2010 calendar year. [It seems like we just did that.]
Our philosophy is a simple one of “go and do”. We think it very important to get the boys out of doors and into nature where we can enjoy the beauty & awe God has created. We are very blessed to live in an area of such bounty, so we like to get away from the electronics and go enjoy life in the fresh air. And wherever we go, we try to diligently practice the concept of “leave it better than you found it”, or in the new terminology, “Leave No Trace”.