Scout Summer Camp

The boys had arrived from Honduras about 30 hours before this first picture below of them at Camp Sequoyah for Scout Summer Camp.  The troop left Chelsea around 10AM, but me and the boys stayed through Sunday Service before getting on the road to camp.  We stopped on the way at Popeyes for what Sam now claims has the best chicken sandwich.   And, I don't know, but that sandwich was pretty convincing.  We parked in lot just outside of the camp, and began our trek to Hawk's Landing and Cherokee Point, which is where the troop would be staying.  Sam was sharing a tent with Brandon Brown, and Davis got to hang out with Sawyer Griswold.  This was the 50 year anniversary for Camp Seqouyah, and I think their scoutmaster had been there for the 25 year anniversary.  This is Sam's last summer camp with the scouts and his troop, and I wanted to stay with them, but I had some work that would not allow me two weeks off in a row.  

So from the notes I got from the boys, they did excellent as a troop.  They got first place in the shooting competitions, with Davis on the rifle shooting team.   They got 1st place in the triathlon, which is not surprising as they have a couple track stars from Chelsea, and two mile swimmers.  And they got 2nd place in the water carnival, but I was told it was stolen because they were unable to complete the canoe tug of war and scoutmaster belly flop.   Sam was acting as the junior scoutmaster at the camp, so he said he was well prepared to due a full flop to win the prize.  And Davis shared to me that he basically had to manage alot of the senior patrol leader duties as Foster was hanging out with the leadership patrol.   The Leader Patrol got to pretty much have the full Hawks Landing area for their hangout.  And with all this troop winning...the boys said that the other troops started referring to them as the "Spoiled rich white kid" troop.  Which we all got a laugh out of, because if Chelsea is where the spoiled rich white kids are, don't know what to think about wherever those guys were from.  

Davis participated in the Adventure Valley mud course and said he was the last one in the showers that night, so it was a sticky time waiting.  Sam found a shirt from 2011, that was his first time camping at Camp Seqouyah.  They both told me the favorite part was the Shotgun shooting merit badge, which they both earned...even if Sam had to wait for the remedial classes to finally hit a skeet.  They liked the instructor that referred to them as "Boss".  Again, I hated to miss this last opportunity with Sam, but he said it was fun, and he got to hang out with Brandon.  They said the 95 degree heat was difficult at times, but they are scouts and tend to keep complaining to a minimum.  I think the troop only lost one scout mid week to a concerned momma, with a normal number of new guys with a few tears of homesickness.  Those tears seem to be gone from these boys, now moistening the eyes of an old man writing memories to help him hold onto these years.