Yesterday evening at the Bryn Athyn Scout Building, there was a celebration marking the 40-year anniversary of the founding of Bryn Athyn's Scout Troop, Troop 97. One of the speakers at the event was Kenneth York who spoke about how he, Bob Zecher, and others worked to get the troop started back in 1984. He spoke about the early days meeting in Heilman Hall with about 70 boys from the old Bryn Athyn Boys Club and no scout uniforms, badges, equipment, or training. “To say the least, we had challenges,” Ken said, “and meetings were a bit crazy. But we finally chartered our troop.”
Ken spoke about how, as the years passed, the troop moved to a basement room in the Assembly Hall and then to the BACS gym, but Bob kept bringing up the idea of the troop having its own building. Eventually, after a lot of planning and work, construction began on the Bryn Athyn Scout Building in June of 2004. Various minor and major improvements have been made to the building and grounds over the years, the most recent of which is a new free-standing flagpole, donated by the Brian and Hayley Gunther family, which was used for the first time at the 40-year celebration yesterday.
The Scout Oath, which was recited at this gathering (as it is at all scout gatherings) is this: “A Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent.” The current Scoutmaster of Troop 97, Andrew McMackin, spoke about how those are just words unless a person strives to actually be those things—to be trustworthy, to be loyal, to be helpful, etc. Over the past four decades, many, many scouts and adult volunteers have been involved in Troop 97 and have worked to embody those values, and Bryn Athyn Church and the broader community has benefited. Bryn Athyn Church is the charter organization for Troop 97, but the Troop would not exist or be at the level that it is without the dedication and countless hours given by many volunteers over the years. Our thanks and congratulations to everyone involved with Troop 97. If anyone would like to get involved as a Cub Scout, Boy Scout, or adult volunteer, email troop0097@gmail.com and you can be part of the next 40 years of Troop 97.
Read the written version of Ken York’s address at www.batroop97.org.