History

An Abbreviated History of Troop 15

In 1950, Walter Ayers worked as a school bus driver in Redding. Day after day, he heard the boys on the bus complain that there was nothing to do. He asked them if they were interested in joining Boy Scouts. He had been an Assistant Scoutmaster with Troop 75 in Stratford, and was a trained Scout leader. The boys said “Yes”, and on May 1, 1950, Troop 15 was chartered with Walter Ayers as the Scoutmaster. Other members of the Troop Committee included Paul Crosby, Committee Chairman, Philip Bergquist and Charles Ferry, committee members, and Irving Ruman as Assistant Scoutmaster. The Troop meetings were held at the Old Hill School, a building that is now Town Hall. By the end of the first year of operation, Troop membership was up to thirty-two.

The Troop was sponsored by the Redding Grange, which remained the sponsor until 1956. The Troop’s tradition of camping and advancement had its roots in these early years. An article from the August 16, 1956 issue of the “Redding Times” reported thirteen scouts returning from two weeks at Camp Mauweheu, on Candlewood Lake, having earned twenty-two merit badges. In 1957 the Troop awarded its first Eagle Scout Badge to John Wilson. It would be eight years before the next Eagle Ceremony, but in 1965, three additional Eagle Scout Badges were awarded to Bill Baumbach, Hank Sanford and Brad Welton.

In 1957, sponsorship of the Troop changed to the Redding Ridge and West Redding Fire Companies. This was somewhat natural, as the Explorers (scouts age 14 and over) had been working with the Emergency Medical Services personnel from the fire companies. Over the next twelve years, nine different men served as Chair of the Troop Committee. One, Don Cowles, became Committee Chairman in 1960 and served until 1963 when he took over as Scoutmaster, a position he held until 1969. Don’s contributions to the troop continued until the early 1990s, when poor health forced him to retire from his position as Assistant Scoutmaster and Advancement Chairman. Much of the available history of Troop 15 is due to Don’s diligence at preserving our heritage. He was awarded a thirty year Veterans Pin at a dinner in honor of his retirement in 1991.

In 1969, the sponsorship of the Troop changed to the Redding Elementary PTA and the Troop moved its meeting place to the Redding Elementary School. Prior to this change, Troop meetings had alternated between the Redding Ridge and West Redding firehouses. Now the Troop had a single meeting facility at RES. Sponsorship would change once more in the early 1990s when the RES PTA, following a recommendation from their national organization, decided to withdraw its sponsorship. The West Redding Fire Company again stepped forward and re-assumed sponsorship of Troop 15, which continues to the present.

During the three decades Don was involved with the Troop, registered boy membership ranged from a low of nineteen in 1984 to as high as fifty-one in 1968. During that same period, the Troop was fortunate to have, on average, a dozen or more adults registered and lending their skills and dedication to the program. The number of Eagles grew from four in 1970 to thirty-four in 1990. Three of those Eagles completed a majority of their Scouting careers as members of Troop 40 in Georgetown, Connecticut. In 1986, Troop 40 combined with Troop 15.

The Troop established its Year-round camping program, which continues to the present, and several high adventure programs were held. These high adventures, five to seven days in length, provided an additional outdoor experience for older boys in the Troop. In 1986, ten scouts and adults hiked the Shenepsit Trail from near the Massachusetts/Connecticut line to near Glastonbury where they rented canoes and completed their traverse of the State by paddling down the Connecticut River to Long Island Sound. In 1988, about fourteen scouts and leaders completed a five-day, fifty-mile canoe trip around Lake Wallenpaupack in Northeastern Pennsylvania. In 1990, six scouts and two leaders completed a trip to the White Mountains in New Hampshire combining hiking and white-water rafting.

The ten years leading to the new Millennium saw continued growth in the Troop, thanks in large part to a very active Cub Pack. Formal cross-over ceremonies helped bridge the transition from Cub Scouting to Boy Scouting. Registered membership typically ranges from the mid-thirties to a high of fifty-eight in 1994. A list of Eagles are included under the “Eagle” tab. Over the years, a number of organizations in Redding and nearby towns became the beneficiary of service projects required of these Eagles, including:

Building a permanent container for refuse at the Congregational Church
Planting trees at John Read Middle School
Painting and relining the parking lot at Sacred Heart Church in Georgetown
Clearing and remarking trails at Topstone Park
Sanding and Painting the Studio at Congregational Church
Erecting Par Fitness station at Topstone Park
Lining and landscaping the parking lot at the Woodcock Nature Center
Making a portion of the Saugatuck Trail handicapped accessible
Building a handicapped accessible walkway replacing steps at Congregational Church
Building foot bridges at New Pond Farm
Building a handicapped ramp at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Georgetown
Clearing and widening the Little River Trail
Restoring and Painting the gazebo on the Town Green
Building a dock and refinishing two large classrooms at the Woodcock Nature Center
Mapping the location of all veterans graves in the town’s 7 cemeteries
Painting food shed at West Redding Fire House

Troop 15 entered the 21^st Century proud of its heritage and the accomplishments of its members. We owe a debt of gratitude to those who formed and preserved the Troop, and recognize our responsibility to carry on the tradition; maintain the high standards; and to continue in service to the young men of Redding, the community, and to society at large. (June 10, 2001)

Recent Eagle Scout Projects:

Quinn Pranzo – Designed and installed a composting unit for the Town of Redding parade path and public garden.
Sami El-Abid – Restored a 1902 Rutland flatcar train at the Danbury Railway Museum.
Harry Reinhardt – Renovated the outdoor reading area behind the Mark Twain Library.
Cameron Hirsch – Built trail kiosks for the Redding Land Trust on the Ground Pine Sanctuary.
Erik Areklett – Collected and distributed supplies for students in need at Danbury school.
Karl Morris – Constructed and installed a 16′ bridge across the John Read Middle School courtyard pond.
Kyle Murray – Installed trail boardwalks at the Limekiln Nature Preserve.
Matthew Sun – Replaced boardwalks and bridges on the End Trail for the Redding Land Trust.
Thatcher Unfried – Constructed and installed a hiking bridge at the Mary Anne Guitar Preserve.
Sam Halpern – Topstone entrance re-landscaped.
Steven Zigmond – Measured Redding driveways for Fire Department records.
Steven Shuford – New Pond Farm promotional application.
Tommy Mulcahy – Park benches built on town garden path.
Trevor Furrer and David Furrer – New Pond Farm wooden observatory platforms.
Nathaniel Demilis – Gravelled Redding garden path.

A Sampling of Campout Adventures:

Mohawk and Sundown ski and campout overnights
High Adventure activity weekends with shotgun & rifle shooting, hatchet throwing and sports
Winter (build your own) Shelter Campouts at Cullens Reservation
Camp McGrath
Shea Island beach campout
Appalachian Trail in CT, 3-Day Trek
Great Falls, Housatonic River, Epic Bonfire Campout
St. John’s Ledges, 16.5 miles of Appalachian Trail
Adventure Park at Storrs, Storrs, CT
Lion’s Head Trail, Salisbury, CT
Bear Mountain, Appalacian Trail, Massachusetts to Connecticut
Camp Sequassen, Order of the Arrow Fellowship

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