By Marney Simon | Enterprise Staff
It was a party 30 years in the making, as area Boy Scouts came together to celebrate three decades in Plainfield.
Boy Scout Troop 19 held a party for members past and present at Riverfront Park last weekend. Scoutmaster Steve Martin estimated that the Troop, which currently boasts about 70 Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts, has had between 250 and 300 members in its 30-year history. Troop 19 is sponsored by St. Mary Immaculate Parish in Plainfield.
“It is, I think, the best organization… to teach leadership, independence and self-confidence to young men,” Martin said of Scouting. “The idea is, hopefully we make leaders of tomorrow. These kids will be running the country one day; they just learn a lot of the skills necessary to be self-sufficient leaders in this country.”
Martin and his son, Jack, were present at a meeting of the Plainfield Village Board July 18, when Mayor Michael Collins issues a proclamation marking July 30, 2016, as Boy Scout Troop 19 Day in Plainfield. Jack, who at age 14 is just one level below Eagle Scout, said Scouts have taught him how to be at the head of the pack.
“When you join Scouts, if you’re more involved, it just gives you such a sense of leadership and how to lead people,” Jack said.
The teen, who said he enjoys the camping and high adventure activities of Scouting the most, said he hopes to make Eagle Scout by the time he is 16.
“Get involved with as much as you can,” is Jack’s advice to younger boys who might be entering Cub Scouts. “When you get involved, do stuff, get to know people, it’s a lot of fun.”
Martin said Scouts develop skills through rank advancement and merit badges. He noted that skills and badges are both outdoor focused, as well STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) focused.
“It takes a lot of self-discipline,” Martin said “They learn a lot of practical life skills. A lot of adults that went through Scouting actually got their first interest in what they eventually did as a career by working on a merit badge. As far as I know, there’s nothing that has the depth and breadth of what Scouting has.”
More than 60 Troop 19 Scouts have reached the rank of Eagle Scout over the Troop’s 30-year history. At that level, Scouts have to perform a community service project benefitting the local community.