Thanks to a generous donation from Long Tire, Boy Scout Troop 661 has new trailer tires, which were needed for their annual summer camp trip up to Georgia.
As Boy Scout Troop 661 of Ruskin makes its final preparations for their annual Summer Camp, they recently received a donation from Long Tire of Brandon. Every year, the troop packs up its trailer full of camping equipment and boys scouting gear, however; this year prior to making the 500-mile trek to this year’s choice summer camp (Camp Woodruff in Blairsville, GA), it was a clear that the trailer tires would need to be replaced.
In light of the hard economic times we face today, the troop’s funds were also lower than normal, and there was no choice but to increase the price of camp in order to make the much needed purchase.
The troop is traveling this year with 23 scouts and 12 chaperones. This year was particularly tough because one of the troop’s main fundraisers had to be cancelled. The troop is known for its Pumpkin Bread Sales in November and its
Banana Bread sales in April, but due to a health issue of our “Camp Cook”, the fundraiser needed to be cancelled. When customers were reached about cancelling their orders, many were understanding and told the scouts to keep their
Bread Money as a donation. Long Tire went a step farther. When Denise St. Sauveur was approached and told of the cancellation of the fundraisers, she said, “I brought the problem to my boss, Shannon Long of Long Tires, and he generously offered to replace the troop’s trailer tires as his donation to the troop.”
The troop works hard throughout the year to make summer camp available to all their scout families. They often have a small scholarship fund available to help out scouts who would otherwise not be able to attend due to family financial issues. Troop 661 is very visible within their community and assists with a multitude of service projects and works closely with the Ruskin VFW, the SCC VFW, the Ruskin Elks Lodge, the committee for the Manatee Arts Festival (they park your cars), and more.
If you would like to contribute to the Scout fund and help a boy go to camp, please contact Denise St. Sauveur at denise@longtire.com.
