Dallas Troop 124 Website

History of Scouting

Scouting, as known to millions of youth and adults, evolved during the early 1900s through the efforts of several men dedicated to bettering youth. These pioneers of the program conceived outdoor activities that developed skills in young boys and gave them a sense of enjoyment, fellowship, and a code of conduct for everyday living.

In this country and abroad at the turn of the century, it was thought that children needed certain kinds of education that the schools couldn't or didn't provide. This led to the formation of a variety of youth groups, many with the word "Scout" in their names. For example, Ernest Thompson Seton, an American naturalist, artist, writer, and lecturer, originated a group called the Woodcraft Indians and in 1902 wrote a guidebook for boys in his organization called the Birch Bark Roll. Meanwhile in Britain, Robert Baden-Powell, after returning to his country a hero following military service in Africa, found boys reading the manual he had written for his regiment on stalking and survival in the wild. Gathering ideas from Seton and others, Baden-Powell rewrote his manual as a nonmilitary skill book, which he titled Scouting for Boys. The book rapidly gained a wide readership in England and soon became popular in the United States. In 1907, when Baden-Powell held the first campout for Scouts on Brownsea Island off the coast of England, troops were spontaneously springing up in America.

William D. Boyce, a Chicago publisher, incorporated the Boy Scouts of America in 1910 after meeting with Baden-Powell. (Boyce was inspired to meet with the British founder by an unknown Scout who led him out of a dense London fog and refused to take a tip for doing a Good Turn.) Immediately after its incorporation, the BSA was assisted by officers of the YMCA in organizing a task force to help community organizations start and maintain a high-quality Scouting program. Those efforts climaxed in the organization of the nation's first Scout camp at Lake George, New York, directed by Ernest Thompson Seton. The Boy Scouts of America program grew rapidly and now includes about 1,004,000 boy members, 530,000 adult volunteers and over 52,000 troops.

History of Troop 124

Troop 124 was founded in 1956 so we are approaching our 50th year of continuing charter with the Boy Scouts of America. We are a middle size troop of about 50 Scouts and many active, adult-leader trained parents. Ever since Troop 124 was founded, there has been a good mix of older and younger scouts. The older scouts help the younger scouts get started through their Trail to First Class. Once these Scouts reach their First Class rank, they are considered older scouts.

Eagle Scout Honor Roll

1972
Mark Harris

1977
Jon Harris, David Harris

1978
David Brauss, Kirk Lola, Robert O'Neal, James Stanley

1982
Brian Alling, Jon Dahlander

1983
David Abby

1984
Bill Fergerson, Chris Dahlander, David Hooker, Christopher Russell

1985
Mark Miller

1986
Shane Wilder, Charles Wilder, Davis Berryman, Dereck Osborne

1988
Lee Carter II, Robert Johnston, Keith Foerster

1989
Keith Woofin, Niles Illich, Lindsey Graham, Steve Poe

1990
Lee Brinkerhoff, Matthew Sanderson, Dan Walton, Greg Miller

1991
Todd Pappas, Ramsey Bowen, Chris Daily

1992
Kory Pappas, Jon Crandall, Todd Berryman, Bryan Garner, Jim Garner

1993
Trey Pappas, Chris Grenshaw, Mark Sterrett, Jason Vickery, Ryan Clayton, Chris Elmore, Ryan Harvey

1994
Andrew Harms, Zachary Loafman, Sean Tracey

1995
Todd Sanders

1996
Jason Roland, Mason Enright

1997
Brian Robertson

1998
Robert Neuhoff, Chris Lafield, Collins Illich, Timothy Darley,

Zev Wuntch, Justin Brown, Joshua Newton

1999
Jimmy Loudin

2000
Brandon Flohr, Zachary Hoover, Paul Lowers, Eddie Newton

2001
Allen Gilbert, Jordan John

2002
Jesse Laura, Garrett Clark, Michael Wilder, Coleman Thompson, Adam Pierce

2003
Jeremy Lujan, Jim Douglas

2004
Charles Lena, Dan Neuhoff, Ryan Siebert, Daniel Valella, Matt Ways

2005
Preston Vickrey, Grant Sedberry, Michael Shashoua

2006
Beau Beeau, Ben Hudson, Kendall Laura,
Robert Lena, Patrick Mann, Travis Stull, Michael Ways, Adam Goodchild

2007
John Armitage, Paul Dowell, Cody Harris, Garrett Moore, Andrew Mozley

2008
E.J. Bensing, Scott Kinard, Andrew McCall, Cameron Sanders, John Shewchuk

2009
Joseph Lafferty, Stratton Mann, Dhiren Parbhoo

Adult Recognition and Awards

District Merit Award
1982 Bruce O'Neal
1983 Paul Johnston
1992 Eric Graham
1993 Roger Sanderson
1999 Leonard Robertson
2003 Phil John

Polaris Award
1989 Eric Graham
1993 Preston Vickery
1994 Mike Clayton and Bill Walton
1997 Leonard Robertson
1998 Phil John and Wayne Wilder
2000 Andrea Neuhoff
2001 Tom Clarke

Silver Beaver
1984 Bruce O'Neal
1988 Paul Johnston
1994 Eric Graham
1995 Roger Sanderson
2005 Leonard Robertson