Scouting in Hughson
History of Hughson, California: The People, the Places, the Traditions of a Small Town
With March as the month for Girl Scout Cookie sales, the Historical Society elected to focus on the history of scouting in the area during its March 2022 meeting. Joyce Stark presented a Girl Scout uniform on behalf of Nancy Harris, who could not attend. Harris shared about buddy burners, favorite recipes, including Jungle and concluded, “It was just another way to enjoy growing up in our small town of Hughson.”
Attendees shared recollections of scouting campouts, cooking, service projects, Cub Scouts attending in the basement of the Hughson Baptist Church, bike rides down the Oregon coast, and the many efforts to earn those badges, including a few mishaps.
Special guests Richard Worley and Melissa Worley spoke about local Scout troops and their history with the programs.
Richard Worley leads the Hughson Scout Troop 27. Worley shared his recollections about Troop 27 and their projects, and showed his Scout uniform, explaining the meaning of various badges and symbols.
“I started at eight years old, and I'm now 72. It’s taken a long time, but I've had a lot of fun and enjoyed meeting many people. I'm an eagle, class of 1965, my son's an eagle, class of 1993, and my grandson is now a Cub Scout,” he said.
Currently, the scout troop has five boys and four adults. “Our troop is, as little as it is, probably one of the more active units in the district right now. Last summer, with summer camps closed, a family member had a cabin, and the boys went down there. They planned their own campout, did their cooking, went fishing, hiking, did all the stuff they would normally do at summer camp and had a great time.”
Worley shared Boy Scout books from several decades, “When you first join, you get a book you go through different steps. Each book has all of requirements that you need—the requirements of changed over the years. For instance, I think in one of these, you’re are supposed to know how to stop a wild team of horses. They also had to know Morse code, which I had to know from scouting, but that has been discontinued with the GPS situation in cell phones.”
Service forms an important component of Scouting. Worley shared, “We're down to a little bit smaller amount of scouts, but we're still doing service projects. We've helped Tammy Lee with the Christmas baskets for the last couple of years by counting out rice and beans and doing whatever to fill the baskets that they give out at Christmas. That's been a joy for us to do, as well, in the future, we're still talking about going to Hawaii for summer camp. We're going to try and start our tri-tip barbecue Fundraiser dinner again on the 29th of April. Be looking for that if you would, and we would enjoy serving you.”
He said, “There are over two and a half million eagles in the United States. If you average a hundred hours of service hours for each project, that adds up to a few. It's a wonderful program.”
Melissa Worley’s presentation focused on levels within Girl Scouts, the various badges and Girl Scout Cookies. When the Girl Scouts first began selling cookies in 1917, scouts made the cookies themselves. Troops receive the cookies during President’s Day Weekend and sell them during the next four weeks outside local stores and door-to-door. For every box sold, $4 goes back to Girl Scouts supporting camps and the local troop itself.
She explained the troop votes on what they will do with the profits from cookie sales. For one service project, the girls purchased books, went to a local preschool, read the books to the students, and then they donated the books to the preschool. They recently toured and donated to Hope’s Chance Horse Sanctuary, a local nonprofit that rescues horses.
Melissa said, “I love hearing all your stories about it. The rewards are not always seen. Hearing your stories and your memories of it helps me know that I am making memories with the girls.”
Originally published in the Hughson Chronicle & Denair Dispatch on March 2, 2022. The Hughson Chronicle & Denair Dispatch is part of MidValley Publications and is committed to the power of the positive press. Reprinted with Permission.
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