Scouts ready for Food Drive

This will be the 24th year for the Boy Scouts of America food drive and in that time 32 million cans of food have been collected for distribution to area food banks and pantries.

In Dexter, Boy Scout Troop 200 and Cub Scout Pack 200 will be distributing bags to area homes with the BSA emblem on them on Nov. 15. Residents are urged to help with this effort by filling the bags with non-perishable food items that will be picked up by the scouts on Nov. 22.

All food donated in the Dexter area goes to the Stoddard County Rescue Mission. There the food will be put into food baskets to be distributed to the hungry over the holidays.

The Boy Scouts asked that all donated food items be non-perishable. Suggested items include canned chili, stew, fish, chicken, lunch meat, beans, vegetables, fruit juice and hearty soups. They also suggest that easy-to-open pop top items such as soups and meats are a good choice for transient families and individuals.

The Dexter Scouts are part of the Sioux District of the St. Louis Area Council of Boy Scouts of America. The food drive began in 1984 and has been hugely successful.

Boy Scout Troop 200 works the outlying areas in Dexter and Cub Scout Pack 200 works inside the city.

Residents should "be prepared" for the BSA bags that will be showing up at their homes on Nov. 15 and help the Scouts by contributing to this cause.

"The Scout program emphasizes the importance of helping others, says a Scoutmaster Bob Martin, "Doing a good turn daily and community service are cornerstones of our program."