The Abraham Lincoln “Fire Crew” (left to right) is Chief Petty Officer Mayra Ochoa, Russell McCannel, Kami Naraghi and Ellis Sarn.
Troop 223 is one of the most active in California and has more of its Scouts achieve Eagle Scout status than any other area of the country. Its vision statement: “Young people leading skillfully, making good choices, serving others.”
The January Palisades Fire forced postponements and cancellations of many Troop activities. Now, Troop 223 has resumed its weekly meetings, and held its first campout.
During the Troops visit to its camp in Balboa Park in San Diego on March 1, Scouts were invited to visit several U.S. Navy active-duty ships. Scouts were hosted by the crews of the USS Curtis Wilbur, USS Pinckney, USS Stockdale and the USS Abraham Lincoln.
Crewmembers showed the Scouts how they carried out their duties while at sea and allowed them to wear and use some of their emergency response gear. In the afternoon, the Scouts returned to Camp Balboa where they cooked their own meals and fell asleep to the sounds of the animals next door at the San Diego Zoo.
The Troop normally met at St. Matthews in Pacific Palisades, but that school suffered significant damage to its campus and is closed for the foreseeable future.
Through the generous offering of St. Paul the Apostle School in Westwood, the Troop resumed its weekly Scout meetings on February 11 (Monday nights for girls, Tuesday night for boys) hosted by St. Paul at 1536 Selby Avenue.
On March 18, the Troop welcomed nearly 50 new Scouts into both the Boys and Girls Troops in a Court of Honor held at St. Paul the Apostle.
Scouts now include girls and offer them the chance to explore the outdoors, learn cooking, survival skills and learn leadership skills. Community service is emphasized and required to become an Eagle Scout. It provides young women a chance to stand out, because only 2.5% of Eagle Scouts are women.
Mike Lanning became the Scoutmaster in 1953 and after being in Scouting for nearly eight decades, he said he wished that “I could figure out a way to get more parents to come and take a look at the program.” He noted that there’s no way to quantify the leadership skills and self-confidence that youth in the program acquire.
Those who join soon will be able to participate in the April campout at Joshua Tree National Park for rock climbing. If interested, please email Greg Frost at frostfamily@frostinvestigations.com
Scouts have their first campout after the Palisades Fire.