Scouting offers lifelong benefits, skills and experience | News, Sports, Jobs

On Tuesday evening, a special welcome event takes place at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Alpena, where Scout Troop 92 and Cub Scout Pack 3092 are based.

The registration event will take place from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, at the church, 727 2nd Ave.

Scouts normally meet from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday and Cubs meet from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on the same evenings.

“There are a lot of benefits,” said Steven Donajkowski, Assistant Boy Scout 92 Troop. “We help young people gain confidence not only in themselves, but also being on the outside. “

Scouts from Troop 92 are getting ready to go canoeing this past summer.

He explained some of the lifelong skills Scouts learned including first aid, shelter making, cooking, car maintenance, horseback riding, canoeing, kayaking, swimming and many more. Moreover.

“It’s fun,” Donajkowski said. “There are a ton of hands-on activities they can do while building the confidence to be able to do them.”

In 2019, the National Council began allowing women in the troops.

Cubs are for Grades 1 through 5, and Scouts are for Grades 6 through 12.

Scouts also participate in the pine forest derby and build rockets and nesting boxes.

Canoeing is just one of the many activities the 92 Troop Scouts enjoyed.

“The Eagle Scout is the end goal,” said Donajkowski. “It’s one of the most prestigious awards you can get.

He added that President Gerald Ford and Buzz Aldrin were Eagle Scouts.

“There are a lot of things they have to learn to use in everyday life,” he said of Scouts, including public speaking, citizenship, robotics and dentistry. . “The opportunities are endless. “

He noted that due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they had to go from face-to-face to virtual, but “it’s difficult to get hands-on experience on a virtual platform.”

They have been meeting in person since March of this year.

Scouting is for all seasons. Right, a scout interacts with a horse last March at the MKM Equine in Posen.

“One of the first things we did in person was the Riding Merit Badge,” said Donajkowski.

They went to the MKM Equine in Posen.

“We took the kids ice fishing,” he added. “We only caught one fish, but we had a blast.”

Then in June, they held a weeklong summer camp at Cole’s Canoe Base in Algiers, Michigan.

“We are spending 10 days there,” Donajkowski explained. “It’s funny. They pitch their own tents, cook their own meals and clean up.

He said leaders educate them, but Scouts learn to do things on their own, depending on their peers rather than adults to help them accomplish their tasks.

“We’re always looking for adult leaders,” said Donajkowski, whose 13-year-old son Mason is in Troop 92. “Adults don’t even need to have kids in Scouting to be a leader. They just have to want to help.

Donajkowski, 40, helps lead along with two other Scout leaders, aged 59 and 70. He would be happy to see more people step in to help with the troop and the pack.

“We had a blast this summer,” he says. “We went canoeing.

They set out from Hubbard Lake for a two-day trip, making a total of 22 miles by canoe. On the first day, they canoeed 14 miles to Indian Reserve Road State Park and camped there for the night.

“The Scouts bring food, shelter and dry clothes with them in the canoe,” Donajkowski said. “Two weeks before they learn what to pack and how to pack light. “

Each season has a program full of fun, he added.

“In the fall we hike six miles through the Huron National Forest and they have to hike with them.”

They meet at Lost Lake Woods and the next day they are rewarded with lunch at The Mountain Inn restaurant in Black River.

Joining the Boy Scouts is not free, but scholarships are available, and the Boy Scouts do a lot of fundraising to cut costs, including raising $ 18,000 through a Bottle Drive on the Eastern Campus, where they set up a 10 × 10 kennel where people could deposit their returnable cans and bottles.

“We had to empty it once or twice a day,” said Donajkowski, who was very grateful for the support from the community.

Scouting costs around $ 140 per year and summer camp costs an additional $ 400.

“So if we have a Scout who can’t afford to pay, we’ll use that money,” he noted.

October 29 is the annual Boy Scout Dinner, which will cost $ 12 per adult and $ 6 per child.

They also build a float for the Christmas parade, and on Remembrance Day they help bring out the flags before the parade.

“We are removing the old flags,” Donajkowski added.

Troop 92 was founded in 1956.

Another thing the troop does is volunteer in the community.

They recently built a disabled ramp for one of their families, and they do other chores, like shoveling snow.

“I don’t have the words to express my gratitude for your help clearing my daughter’s driveway,” one community member wrote in a note to the troop. “With young people like you, I have confidence in the future of our great country.”

Contact Darby Hinkley at 989-358-5691.