81 scouts head to Emory & Henry for training

EMORY, Va. (WJHL) – Emory & Henry College played host to a number of scouts and accompanying adults on Saturday.

According to the college, 81 scouts and 28 parents and troop leaders attended the Merit Badge camp on Emory & Henry’s campus. Saturday marked the first time the camp has been held on the college’s campus.

During the camp, 11 Merit badge classes were offered. Classes were led by college faculty and staff, as well as Emory & Henry students and adult troop leaders.

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A news release from Emory & Henry states classes on animation, art, engineering, fitness, gardening, photography and more were taught. Scouts were also given a tour of campus.

The camp was organized by Dr. Jean Irion, a retired faculty member of Emory & Henry’s School of Health Sciences and mother of two Eagle Scouts. Billy Chandler, the college’s web content coordinator, who is also an Eagle Scout and Boy Scouts of America Volunteer, also helped organize the event.

“It was great to see scouts come in from so many different states in the region,” Dr. Irion stated in the news release. “With this being the first time hosting, I hoped for 30 scouts and was shocked that we hosted more than 80 scouts from seven different councils and four different states.”

The Sequoyah Council of the Boy Scouts of America assisted in registering scouts from Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and North Carolina.

Emory & Henry hopes to turn the camp into an annual event.

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