Current and former Boy Scouts invited to help parish troop celebrate 50 years

St. Michael the Archangel parishioners Phil Price, from left, his son, William, and Jim Cowden, all of Indianapolis, reminisce about Catholic Scouting during a meeting on Oct. 1 at St. Michael School in Indianapolis. Current and former members of St. Michael Parish’s Boy Scout Troop #400 will celebrate 50 years of continuous Scouting on Nov. 7. (Photo by Mary Ann Wyand)

By Mary Ann Wyand

Even without a campfire, it’s fun to swap Scouting stories.

It’s even more fun when the Boy Scouts are grown men who reminisce about their childhood camping trips.

Memories, jokes and perhaps a few tall tales will probably dominate the conversations when St. Michael the Archangel parishioners in Indianapolis welcome former and current members of Boy Scout Troop #400 to a 50th anniversary reunion on Nov. 7 at the Parish Life Center behind the church at 3354 W. 30th St.

St. Michael parishioner and attorney Phil Price said Boy Scouts of all ages will celebrate 50 continuous years of Catholic Scouting at the Indianapolis West Deanery parish.

The reunion begins with a Mass at 5:30 p.m. in the church concelebrated by Father Varghese Maliakkal, the parish administrator, and Msgr. Mark Svarczkopf, a son of the parish and former Boy Scout who is now the pastor of Our Lady of the Greenwood Parish in Greenwood.

The reunion continues in the Parish Life Center with social time at 6:30 p.m. and a program at 7 p.m.

“We’re going to celebrate our history as a troop and the fact that we are one of the longest, continuous troops within the West Deanery,” Price said. “There were many more. St. Gabriel [the Archangel] Parish, St. Christopher Parish and a number of other parishes had troops. We’re still an active troop.”

He said nearly 600 boys and adult leaders have been members of the troop during the past five decades.

“Once I reached the age where you could be a Scout, I joined the troop,” Price said. “I think I was the second Eagle Scout of Troop #400. I have been involved with the troop committee for years.”

Scouting teaches boys important leadership and outdoor skills as they earn a variety of merit badges, Price said, which help them succeed as adults.

“Because we are a Catholic Scout troop, the scoutmasters that I had always made sure when we did weekend camping that we made it to church,” he said. “We went to church as Scouts in our uniforms.”

Boy Scouts are always learning new skills, Price said, whether it is cooking outdoors or starting fires with sticks.

“It’s the camaraderie of being with the guys,” he said, “accomplishing things and learning from our mistakes.”

St. Michael parishioner Dave Hennon, the current scoutmaster, said 18 boys are active in the troop, and Eagle Scouts come back occasionally to help with campouts and other activities.

Hennon is an information systems director at a hospital and the father of two boys who are members of the troop.

“I think the Scouting program really helps build self-reliance and confidence,” he said. “The kids learn by doing. … Scouting allows them to learn from their mistakes. … They learn leadership skills, which are useful to them in school and throughout their life in many capacities.”

Scouting helps boys learn how to motivate themselves, Hennon said, as well as accept responsibility and finish projects on time.

“I enjoyed the water craft sports,” Hennon said. “Sailing was, I think, my favorite [activity] because we went to Camp Ransburg, a really large Scout camp in southern Indiana on Lake Monroe. Spending days out on the reservoir on a sailboat was a lot of fun.”

Boy Scouts gain unique life skills, he said, including first aid and [tying] knots, which he still uses as an adult.

“A lot of the things that Scouts do [to earn merit badges] teach them personal management skills,” Hennon said. “I think probably the more important thing in terms of a life skill is building a good, solid citizen. A big part of the program is not just leadership, but also service—giving back that spirit of service to the parish and community—that carries into adulthood.

“That is part of the reason why I said I would be a Scout leader,” he explained. “It’s very rewarding. Watching the older boys organize and lead activities is very gratifying. … That’s an age at which they need positive influence with a group of peers who are doing wholesome activities. Scouting—along with what they get in school and sporting programs—helps create a very well-rounded person.”

St. Michael parishioner Jeb Bardon is a franchise restaurant owner and also serves the people of Indiana as the state representative of District 25.

“It was a social activity as much as a training or leadership or community service activity,” Bardon said. “We spent literally countless days, if not weeks, off doing things as friends with the guidance of some outstanding adults. If I had not been involved in Scouts, I would never have had these opportunities. We even went spelunking in southern Indiana and spent the night in a cave.” †