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Fundraiser celebrates Boy Scouts in Valley
BOARDMAN
Boy Scouts of America is the largest character-building organization in the area, said Jason Wolf, scout executive of the Greater Western Reserve Council.
“My motto is to do more better,” said Wolf, who was a featured speaker at Whispering Pines District’s seventh annual Celebration of Scouting fundraising breakfast Tuesday at the Holiday Inn here.
The Whispering Pines District represents scouts in Mahoning County and Hubbard, which has 1,215 boys involved and 42 units supported by 536 adult volunteers.
The Greater Western Reserve Council covers Ashtabula, Geauga, Lake, Mahoning, Trumbull and a portion of Portage counties. It has 7,231 youth in 268 units supported by 2,763 adult volunteers.
The meeting’s theme was celebrating scouting’s local impact by recognizing families with generations of Eagle Scouts, said Mark Luke, chairman and master of ceremonies.
Eagle Scout is Boy Scouting’s highest honor.
Eagle Scout families spotlighted were George Grim of Boardman, and his sons John and Jim Grim; Dr. Robert Hunt of Poland and his son, Christopher; and the Kneen family, for which Scouting began in 1936 with Charles Kneen.
“For us three brothers, Scouting was a given, said Dr. Timothy Kneen, guest speaker. His brothers, John and Robert, and his sons, Jason and Travis, are also Eagle Scouts.
“Scouting ... allowed me the freedom to pursue my personal interests in many interesting and original ways, and opened up a world of interests, hobbies and pursuits that I would have missed if not for my time in scouting,” Christopher Hunt said.
“To be in scouting is to rock the boat. To be a Scout is to swim against the current. To be an Eagle Scout, the pinnacle of scouting, requires determination, imagination and hard work,” Dr. Kneen said.
Eagle Scout Anthony William Calautti said scouting has given him many memories and life lessons, taught him to think on his feet and provided lifelong friends.
Calautti, 17, a junior at Boardman High School, earned his Eagle rank in 2011 as a member of Troop 60 at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Boardman.
He acknowledged staying in scouting when he reached high school was difficult, but with perseverance and support from his parents, Victor and Susan Calautti, he did it.
Calautti, whose brother is also an Eagle Scout, is co-captain of the varsity soccer team, a member of the marching and symphonic bands, the track team, a LINK Crew member and participates in the Italian and science clubs. He and his family are members of First Covenant Church, where he is a member of the Senior High Young Group and a Church Time helper.
Scouting is one of the best-kept secrets, but it’s growing, said Wolf.
But to continue to grow and offer programs and opportunities takes money, and he urged people at the meeting to pledge financial support to the scouting program.
The previous six breakfast fundraisers raised a combined $135,000.