Colby McLiverty, a Life Scout and Assistant Senior Patrol Leader with Troop 3 in Derby, is no couch potato, and that’s why he likes scouting so much.
“I love being outside. I love doing things outside,” he said as he supervised a group of Boy Scouts tying the Troop 3 banner on an archway at the Derby Green to welcome visitors to the Ed Strang Day, an annual festivity aimed at recruiting more boys and girls into scouting
.Troop 3 is observing its 98th year and is one of the oldest Boy Scout Troops in the United States.
No one had more to do with its success than Ed Strang, who was a scouting advocate and leader in Derby for more than 70 years. He is so well remembered that he is in the Derby City Hall Hall of Fame memorial and the Ed Strang Scout Reservation in Goshen is named for him.
Ed Strang Day in Derby goes back to 1994, the year before he died, when the city invited actor Brian Dennehy to make an appearance in Derby, where the actor lived for a few years as a boy.
Dennehy agreed to come only to honor his old scout leader, Strang, and the scout recruiting event held on the Green as part of his appearance was deemed so successful that Troop 3 leaders decided to make it an annual event.
“It’s a way to show the community what scouting is all about,” said Troop 3 Scoutmaster Randy Ritter.
Boy Scouts, dressed in their khaki uniforms decorated with colorful patches and badges, organized an array of activities around the Green to show the public the kinds of fun learning pursuits scouts engage in to earn achievement badges.
The activities included Frisbee, soccer, bean bag toss competitions, rope walking and an international cooking exhibit.
Across the street at the Second Congregational Church, which has sponsored Troop 3 throughout its history, there was a moon bounce, an archery demonstration and a slide show of last summer’s scout trip to Florida for a week of sailing instruction.
Girl Scout Troop 60500, comprised of girls from Ansonia and Derby, sponsored a rain gutter regatta exhibit.
Both the Girl Scout and Boy Scout troops also had sign up tables. Ritter said the usual $5 registration fee is waived at Ed Strang Day, and both troops signed up several new members in the first hour.
Ritter said scouting exposes youngsters numerous outdoor skills and learning tasks to earn up to 125 different merit badges. It also builds character and leadership skills.
“You learn to be a leader,” said Scout James Chopak, an 8th-grader from Shelton, who said scouts are taught to mentor others through a system known as EDGE, which stands for Explain, Demonstrate, Guide and Enable.
He said he puts EDGE to work at school in the Spanish Club where he and his classmates help each other to learn Spanish.
