Since its inception, the World Scouting Jamboree has only been held in the United States twice—most recently from July 21-August 2 at The Summit Bechtel Reserve in Bechtel, W. Va. More than 45,000 male and female Scouts and Scouters from 169 countries convened to celebrate Scouting and Scouting values through a variety of exciting activities.
Six Scouts and two adult leaders from Troop 542 were among the two Cradle of Liberty Council troops—USA 126 and USA 129–attending the historic event. Troop 542 Scouts and adult leaders were members of USA Troop 126, led by Jamboree Scoutmaster Arland Hotchkiss, who also serves as Assistant Scoutmaster of Troop 542, and Third Assistant Scoutmaster Nate Russek, college reserve unit leader for 542. Troop 126’s camp site was located between Scouts from Belgium and a unit from Sweden, which offered the American Scouts many opportunities to learn how the Scouting program in other countries is both similar and different.
The typical day at the Jamboree was jam-packed with activities. Highlights included eating meals at various international café’s featuring ethnic dishes and strolling through World Point, an area filled with individual tented exhibits from each country featuring costumes, photos, games, challenges and information. The Global Development Village contained a number of exhibits about sustainability practices, environmentally-related careers, and educational talks about climate change.
A particular point of interest was the Sustainability Treehouse, a multi-floor treehouse filled with fascinating displays about energy conservation, and environmentally-friendly actions Scouts and Scouters could take to preserve our world for future generations. Participants were asked to make written pledges of how they were going to live and act in a more sustainable way.
Of course, Scouts could test their skills doing more adventurous activities such as a ropes course, several types of zip lines, mountain biking, rock climbing, kayaking paddle boarding, skate boarding, a water obstacle course, BMX biking and much more. Patch trading and neckerchief trading happened around every corner and many of the Scouts traded their USA neckerchiefs and patches for more exotic ones from Europe, Asia, South America and the South Pacific, making friends and learning about different countries and cultures along the way. The World Scout Jamboree was a one-of-a-kind experience and one our Scouts will consider a highlight of their Scouting career.