For the seventh year, Scouts BSA Troop 306 of Arlington is sponsoring its annual “Troop 306 for Teens” holiday gift drive to benefit local teens in need. As the holidays draw near, the coed troop is collecting items for nearly 200 teens served by the Arlington office of the Department of Children & Families.
Troop 306 Scouts at Fitness First are Cole Speare, Julia Buckley and Bogi Kiss.
“This program is one of the many things we do in the community. Through this drive, we collect and distribute items to teens who are in difficult situations and who greatly benefit from the community’s support during the holidays,” said Scoutmaster Scott Barvick.
Suggested items to donate include winter hats/gloves, socks (sports/warm), art supplies/coloring books/journals, refillable water bottles, personal hygiene items, wet hair brushes, scrunchies, nail polish, reading lights, face masks, decks of cards, decorative duct tape, candy (holiday, gum, mints), puzzles or brain teasers, and school supplies. Gift cards are also accepted and can be securely dropped off at Leader Bank.
Donations will be collected at the following locations until Dec. 10:
Fitness First (471 Mass. Ave.), Gold’s Gym (30 Park Ave.), Leader Bank (141 Mass. Ave.), St. Camillus (1185 Concord Turnpike), Ottoson Middle School (63 Acton St.), Stratton School (180 Mountain Ave.), Thompson School (187 Everett St.) and Scout family homes at 3 Wheeler Lane (near Stratton), 15 Richardson Ave. (near Ottoson), 62 Margaret St (near Hardy), 324 Park Ave. (near Rt. 2 in Heights) and 118 Ridge St. (near Bishop).
In addition to this annual drive, scouts volunteer at the Arlington Recycling Center, host an annual Arlington EATS (formerly Arlington Food Pantry) collection, cook meals for the Somerville Homeless Coalition and have performed numerous Eagle Scout conservation projects at Window on the Mystic Lake, the Crusher Lot next to Ottoson Middle School and Belmont Habitat.
Through weekly meetings and monthly camping trips, Scouts BSA Troop 306 is an active troop with an emphasis on outdoor adventure, leadership training and skills building.
Established in 1917 and sponsored by the First Baptist Church, the troop welcomes girls and boys in grades six through 12. Troop 306 recently awarded their 99th Eagle Scout, the highest rank attainable and achieved by only 6 percent of scouts in the U.S. Scouts BSA program.
For more information, email T306Arlington at gmail.com or visit www.facebook.com/groups/Troop306Arlington.
This news announcement was published Sunday, Nov. 17, 2019.