January 7, 2015 | The Boy Scouts of America, Caddo Area Council, will receive a $25,000 donation from Texana Bank on Thursday, Jan. 29, 2015, at 10 a.m. at Texana Bank located at 3620 Richmond Road, Texarkana, Texas. The donation will kick off the annual Friends of Scouting Fundraising Luncheon where they are hoping the community will raise an additional $150,000 to go toward providing first class scouting experiences and facilities for the Caddo Area Council service region.
The Friends of Scouting Luncheon will be a community event where residents are invited to come and show their financial support to the over 4000 members in the scouting program. Funds raised through this event will assist area Boy Scouts with the costs of participating in scouting activities and maintaining the 3 properties of the Caddo Area Council of Boy Scouts. The upcoming Friends of Scouting fundraising luncheon is scheduled for Friday, Feb. 20, 2015, at 11:30 a.m. in Texarkana College’s Truman Arnold Student Center Great Room.
“I was not involved in Scouting when I grew up in this community, but in just the two short years I have been involved , I am hooked. It has been incredible to observe the growth and leadership that I see in a bunch of twelve-year-olds who are learning how to be responsible young adults. Scouting is awesome.” said, James Henry Russell, Friends of Scouting Luncheon Coordinator. “I have worked in education in this community for 20 years, and I feel like I now what our youth need to be successful in life. What Scouting has to offer is definitely a big part of what makes a young person very successful in life.”
Texana Bank President John Rountree is an Eagle Scout, as are his sons Patrick and Michael. The whole Rountree family knows the value of Scouting and its positive impact in our community. Rountree is currently serving as President of the Caddo Area Council Executive Board and son Patrick is serving as treasurer for the Council.
“We are so very grateful for the generous gift from Texana Bank to kick off our Friends of Scouting Fundraising Luncheon. And just like the bank is with their customers, they are ‘personally invested in our success.’” said Julie O’Neal, the newly appointed Development Director of the Caddo Area Council. “Support comes in many ways and the Rountree family offers their support through their time and money. They believe in community and in the lives of the young people in it.”
The members of the Caddo Area Council embrace the national slogan of “Do a good turn daily.” The mission of the Boy Scouts of America is to prepare young people to make ethical choices over their lifetime by instilling in them values of the Scout Oath and Law and helping someone each and every day. The Caddo Area Council serves 10 counties in both Arkansas and Texas and include Hempstead, Howard, Lafayette, Little River, Miller, Nevada, Polk and Sevier Counties in Arkansas; and Bowie and Cass Counties in Texas.
