Saturday, May 19, 2007
According to East Texas’ top Boy Scout official, any time an organization can thrive for 90 years, it is quite an accomplishment. When that organization is run entirely by volunteers, Scout Executive Mike Ballew said it is a “huge milestone.”Longview Boy Scout Troop 201 will celebrate its 90th anniversary today from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. at its headquarters in Teague Park and will continue with a Court of Honor awards ceremony at Alpine Church of Christ, 610 East Loop 281 at 6 p.m.
All current and former Scouts with the troop are invited to the event, as well as anyone “who has an interest in learning about the troop’s rich history in Longview,” said Dale Hively, a Troop 201 committee member and event organizer.
“We’ll have our Scout Hut open to everyone and that in itself is a museum,” Hively said of the structure that was originally built in 1940. “There will also be old Scout memorabilia, displays by our current Scouts and plenty of people around telling stories of their time here.”
Sponsored by the Longview Lions Club, Troop 201 is the oldest Scouting unit east of Dallas, according to Scoutmaster Doug Wiley. Since 1917, more than 1,300 boys have come through the troop’s ranks, including more than 140 of them who earned the highest rank of Eagle Scout, he said.
“You realize, when you put on one of these uniforms, how many lives this troop has touched through the years,” Wiley said.
Judge David Brabham, Dr. Chris Yancey and Asst. Police Chief Don Dingler are among the local Troop 201 alumni, according to Hively.
Actor Rip Torn and State Attorney General Greg Abbott were also on its membership roles in their youth.
“When I was a Scout with Troop 201, we were celebrating our 50th anniversary and I remember it fondly,” Abbott said Friday.
Organizers said they did not anticipate Abbott or Torn at the event, although Hively expected “at least a few familiar faces” in attendance.
“Troop 201 has served thousands of youth in Longview and what sets them apart is their committed volunteers through the years,” Ballew said. “This really is a historic celebration for Longview and the Boy Scouts.”
Executive credits volunteers for organization’s ‘huge milestone’
News-Journal.com
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