BECKLEY, W.Va — Busses full of Boy Scout troops came to the Beckley area Thursday to complete community service projects as part the 2017 National Boy Scout Jamboree.
One of the larger projects took Scouts to the Raleigh County Solid Waste Authority’s landfill and recycling center off of Fernando Drive. Two Jamboree troops from Illinois and Missouri worked through the scorching heat to deconstruct wood pallets. The disassembled wood pieces will be given to needy West Virginia families to use as kindle during the winter. Director of Education for the Solid Waste Authority Sherrie Hunter said there’s always a need to help.
“We had an abundance of pallets that were sitting around,” she said. “What a perfect opportunity for Scouts to work together in unison.”
Jamboree Troops 2410 from the Great Rivers Council in Missouri, as well as Troops 2306 and 2338 from Black Hawk Council in Illinois bundled the wood into bundled piles. Scouts signed several of the piles with their troop numbers and positive messages for the recipients. Hunter described the group of Scouts she has met as a special group of young men.
“They have left an indelible mark on our hearts here,” she stated. “These Scouts are doing wonderful work all over.”
In the parking lot of the recycling center, another group of Scouts painted flower sculptures made of recycled propane tanks. The center plans to leave the sculptures on site.
On the other side of Beckley, Scouts of Jamboree Troop 1338 from the Philadelphia area were working hard at Jackie Withrow Hospital along Eisenhower Drive. Groups of Scouts could be seen across the entire hospital campus digging, planting, mulching and cleaning. A couple of them re-painted a patient gazebo near the building’s entrance. Hospital Administrator Angela Booker said she couldn’t be happier to have the Scouts on campus.
“They have been tremendous, I’m looking at the flower bed and it has never looked so great,” she said. “They’re doing painting, edging the sidewalks…the kids are really working. It’s been incredible.”
The application process for service projects from the Jamboree has become competitive. During 2013’s Jamboree, the hospital applied but wasn’t able to receive help due to the demand. Assistant Administrator Aimee Bragg echoed Booker’s compliments, saying the campus will be busy with hard workers for the next several days.
“This year we got out application in early and were approved,” she explained. “They’re going to be here for the next five days, and then we got a phone call last night asking if they could send an extra troop.”
While the Boy Scouts attending this year’s Jamboree will spend a lot of time enjoying recreational activities on the Reserve, more than 100 units will take part in a cumulative 100,000 hours of service throughout West Virginia. Scouts will be in almost every county by the time the Jamboree ends on July 28.