Scouts reunite for group study

Scouts earning religious emblems are Anthony Chandler, front from left, and Faith Williams and Joe Williams, back from left, Alex King, Joshua Murphee and Nathan Chandler. Not pictured Chase Lynn. CONTRIBUTED

MADISON – In March, Cub Scouts in Den 4, Pack 351 were happy to advance to Boy Scouts. However, their progress presented a dilemma.

After knowing each other for several years, the boys joined different Boy Scout troops and went their separate ways. Their solution was to meet on Sunday afternoons during June through September to work on their religious emblems.

The boys also invited their siblings and friends to join them, Scout parent Molly King said.

The Scouts attend different churches but decided to collaborate on earning the religious emblems offered by Members of Churches of Christ for Scouting (MCCS). This organization offers the Servant Leadership Series, giving unique activities-based curriculum designed to encourage age-appropriate faith development.

MCCS’s religious emblem program includes four different age levels and is designed to help youth and adults cultivate and model servant leadership throughout their life.

These Scouts include Anthony Chandler, Cub Scout Pack 351 at Asbury United Methodist, who attends second grade at Endeavor Elementary School. Faith Williams with American Heritage Girls in Troop AL3560 chartered by New Life Baptist Church is a fourth-grader at Rainbow Elementary School.

Joe Williams, a Rainbow sixth-grader, is affiliated with Boy Scout Troop 350, chartered by St. John the Baptist Catholic Church. Alex King in Boy Scout Troop 204, chartered by Madison United Methodist Church, attends sixth grade at Mill Creek Elementary School.

Joshua Murphee in Troop 351 is a sixth-grader at Columbia Elementary School. Nathan Chandler in Troop 204 attends Monrovia Middle School as a sixth-grader.

Chase Lynn in Troop 204 is a Mill Creek sixth-grader. Class instructor was Rick King of Madison Church of Christ and assistant scoutmaster for Troop 204.

In earning their badges, these Scouts volunteered in service projects. They worked at Downtown Rescue Mission and Asbury Community Thrift Store. The Scouts made blankets for Project Linus, raised funds for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and Children’s of Alabama, collected staples for food pantries, read to younger children and assisted at libraries and vacation Bible schools.