Say Thank You

The troop took a week-long trip this summer, having a great time exploring the Pacific Northwest. We ran into lots of different people, some just wanting to exchange money for a campsite and that's all, others enjoying life and sharing their little part of the world with visitors.

A few folks we met really made an impression on the crew by their helpful and friendly attitude. So, on the way home we had a discussion about how people make an impact, good or bad, and what we might do to encourage the 'good'. The scouts thought it would be nice to send Thank You notes to a few they remembered.

I bought some official BSA cards and gave them to one scout that volunteered to write the notes. He then brought them to a couple troop meetings to have all the crew members sign them. Then, I addressed them (since I had all our trip bills and paperwork) and included one of our troop nickels. The notes just finally got sent - about 2.5 months after the trip, but at the end of a busy summer for most of the people that we wrote to.

I'd like to think that receiving a thank you card might bring a smile or two. It also might make it a bit easier for the next troop that visits where we stayed. And, if nothing else, it gave our scouts experience in showing appreciation to others.

In case you were curious, here's some of the people that we met:

• Gary and the guides - at High Desert Outfitters whitewater rafting company in Maupin, Oregon. They showed us a great time on the river.
• Doug - a great old guy that works at the KOA campground in Hammond, Oregon. He took us clam digging at 5:30am using his own gear and introduced us to his War Vet buddies on the beach.
• Rhonda, Emily, and the Rental Dude - at Timberline Lodge on Mt. Hood, Oregon. They got us a nice ski ticket package. The rental dude worked his behind off to get us outfitted and on the hill.
• Sandy - a park ranger at Ft. Clatsop in Oregon. She got us set up to earn our NPS Junior Ranger patches and pins. :-)

Don't forget to thank the people that help make the scouting experience special for your scouts. Lots of people do a bit extra and we certainly shouldn't take them for granted.

Scout On