Rotarians Hear Joys of Scouting

Some boy scouts go to summer camp; Westfield's Troop 72 goes to its very own island. Erincliff Island, on Birch Lake and located about 25 miles north of Kingston, Ontario, was bequeathed to Troop 72 upon the death of its owner. Two Boy Scouts, William and Peter Foltz, ages 18 and 14 and sons of club member (and former Scout) David Foltz, were on-hand to tell the Westfield Rotary Club about Erincliff and other scouting activities at the club's weekly meeting on Tuesday.

"Scouting is all about acquiring skills and applying them to everyday life," said William, who will be a freshman at Moravian College.

The Foltz boys have been scouting since they were in kindergarten. They said it wasn't difficult for their father to get them interested, as they've always loved camping. They talked about boating and earning merit badges on Erincliff Island. Scouts earn merit badges by completing education requirements for a variety of skills. There are over 100 merit badges available to be earned, ranging from business to woodworking to wilderness survival to riflery. Peter, who will be a freshman at Westfield High School, also talked about being one of 44,000 scouts at this year's Jamboree, held at Fort A.P. Hill in Fredericksberg, VA, to celebrate the Boy Scouts' 100th anniversary.

William also described the project he completed in order to earn the rank of Eagle Scout, the highest echelon of scouting rank. To become an Eagle Scout, a scout has to achieve each of the six lower ranks of scout, as well as earn 23 merit badges and complete a service project. For his project, William built a lightning shelter at the confluence of Houlihan/Sid Fay Field.

During a storm, a system at Memorial Pool detects electricity in the air in a ten mile radius and sends a signal to five of Westfield's playing fields. William built a 16' x 20' pavilion with a lightning rod on top. People can take shelter in William's pavilion, and the lightning rod will draw lighting and dissipate it into the ground. William also put up signage describing the purpose of the shelter and what the various signals mean. It took him seven weekends with a crew of 12 scouts and eight adults to finish it. Peter, one rank below Eagle Scout, says he's still not sure what his project will be.

"That's the whole thing about the Boy Scout experience," William said. "You get to apply skills you've learned to the benefit of the community."