MORGANTOWN — Camp Mountaineer got a helping hand this weekend as Comcast Cares Day offered them volunteers to prepare them for the summer camping season. Scout Executive Jeff Doty, of the Mountaineer Area Council Boy Scouts, said it was a day of national service, and they were very fortunate to be chosen.
He said Comcast contacted the United Way and asked them for an agency that might be needing a day of caring and recommended Camp Mountaineer. As a result, Comcast brought out about 30 of their own people, and about 200 volunteers total. They spent the day cleaning timber in the woods, doing conservation projects and planting trees.
“Not only are we getting a day of service for us, but they’ll also be giving us a cash donation by the end of the year based on the amount of volunteers we have — so it’s been a true blessing all around,” Doty said.
Camp Mountaineer sits on around 1,000 acres of land, and Doty said there’s a lot of work to do to serve the kids. The Council serves Mon., Marion, Preston and Taylor Counties, and 600 to 800 kids will utilize Camp Mountaineer over the summer.
Volunteers included those from Comcast, Scouts and their families, as well as also WVU students who do service projects.
“Two hundred people on one day doing nothing, but service is an amazing thing, so we are very excited about that,” Doty said.
Dan McNeil, Council President, was also delighted about the sprucing up of Camp Mountaineer. They are gearing up for a fun-filled summer serving campers not only from West Virginia but also surrounding states.
“We call Camp Mountaineer ‘The Jewel of the Council,’ and it really is. You’re going to see a lot of growth now that we’ve cleared out some trees, and it’s going to be even more beautiful,” he said.
He also said a large part of the day was teaching kids about the importance of service.
“That’s really what this is about is having young people learn about service and provide an arena for people who are adults, and even older scouters, to come and provide some benefit that’s going to help youth and their camping this summer,” he said.
He said Camp Mountaineer is a magnet, as well as a jewel, and hopes they will maintain a rustic camping experience for the youth. Right now, they are also working on developing a new Trading Post — a place where Scouts can get together and socialize. He said they were very fortunate to have Comcast Cares Day offer a helping hand.
“I’m very, very grateful about all the volunteers. I’m very grateful to Comcast for doing this. I’m grateful the United Way sponsored it. Bringing together volunteers from Comcast, and scouting and the community has been overwhelming,” he said.
He said everything they do is entirely locally funded. This money funds all the programs and professional scouters. Boy Scouts hold fundraisers, as well as work with charities.
“It’s important for us to be very involved in the community and have a lot of ties there,” McNeil. said
Both Doty and McNeil said this coming year, girls will finally be able to join Boy Scouts and hope to see their involvement grow. Other events coming up for the Scouts include another day of service coming up May 5th. There will also be an Ox Roast on May 6th.
Doty said the Boy Scouts are always excited to welcome new families to come into scouting. If interested, they can check out their website beascout.org and obtain information on where their local Cub Scout Pack is and who to contact.
