The Greater Tampa Bay Area Council Boy Scouts of America is holding a free Scouting Heritage Luncheon next week to help ensure scouting will be engrained in the Plant City community for decades to come.
Christopher “Beau” Giles, a district executive for the Boy Scouts of America, said Plant City is an important part of his district and he wanted to create an event that would celebrate the heritage of the group, which has been in the area for more than 100 years. He hopes the luncheon will be a fun event that can unite businesses and members of the community toward a common cause: preserving local scouting.
“Communities need a program like scouting, there’s so much value in it,” Giles said. “An event like this is really the jumping off point in reestablishing the prominence of scouting in Plant City. It gives us something to look back on and makes sure the young men and women in the community are good citizens and have a great program to get involved with.”
The luncheon will be held on April 18 from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. at Keel & Curley Winery. Fred’s Market, a long time supporter of Boy Scouts, is catering the event and the winery will have drinks available. While the event is free to attend it will also work as a fundraiser via donations for local troops.
There will be a speaker talking about the importance of Boy Scouts in a community, corn hole, music and mingling among attendees and some of the Scout leaders. Giles said in the future he hopes to do a month long campaign throughout March that will culminate in one large celebratory party at the end of the event. His goal would be for the community to take the reins on an event of that caliber and show their continued support for the group.
Giles said over the past five to seven years scouting and fundraising in Plant City has dwindled. There are several areas in the community that he said desires to start a troop but may not have the funds to do so, hence hosting a fundraiser to give directly back to the local community. One of his goals as district executive is to help create at least one more unit in an underserved community here in Plant City. Once created, each troop operates relatively autonomously and does its own fundraising duties. However, if they are in need or coming up short the council will do their best to step in and make up the difference.
“I can’t ever think of a time in the six months that I’ve been involved with scouting that a kid has wanted to join but hasn’t been able to do so because his parents weren’t able to afford it,” Giles said. “This is truly one of the most affordable programs out there and it teaches so many values to the scouts.”
Giles said one of the best qualities of scouting is it is “imperative” for the entire family to participate in what the scout does. Whether it is getting out in the woods with their parents or learning about things like reverence, Giles said it helps families create memories that will last a lifetime.
“The most valuable skill in life you could learn is how to work hard and achieve your goals,” Giles said. “If I’m hiring somebody and I see someone that has a lot of natural talent or someone who works hard I’ll always choose someone who works hard. Scouting builds values that last throughout a kid’s entire life.”
Having a healthy scouting program also directly benefits local communities. According to Sharrod McCree, field director for the Greater Tampa Bay Area Council Boy Scouts of America, a large part of what the scouts do is give back to others. Whether a troop is working on a project or a scout is doing his Eagle Project, the community is being served by the young civic-minded scouts.
“In 2017, our Scouts provided more than 80,000 hours of service to our communities and the Eagle rank was earned by 334 boys,” McCree said. “All of these efforts are possible because our local businesses and community leaders recognize the substantial impact Scouting has in our community.”
Due to some policy changes at national and some “really great efforts” in the local district, Giles said they have already raised more funds in two months than they did in the entirety of last year for his district.
He said he hopes by kickstarting community partnered events like the upcoming luncheon we will be able to see scouting flourish in Plant City for another 100 years. To RSVP to the event email Giles at christopher.giles@scouting.org or call 813-872-2691 ext. 114.