Boy Scout Troop 121, chartered by St. Peter’s Church in Mansfield, is hosting the Trek-Or-Treat 5K on Sunday, October 27. “This is the third year we are having this 5K. We knew a lot of the Scout members and families of the Scouts enjoyed running, so we thought this event would be perfect for this time of year,” said Troop Committee member David Dauterman.
The Trek-Or-Treat 5K will be held at the Holy Trinity Lutheran Church in Mansfield. The church is located at 525 West Cook Road, Mansfield.
“We wanted to have the 5K in the Woodland area. It is great because it is a cooler time of the year and we will be having costume judging taking place for Halloween. We wanted to do something unique. We will have handmade prizes that will be given out and we will have food and refreshments at the conclusion of the course,” said Dauterman.
Each Scout member will bring a type of food for the event and there will also be a DJ in attendance to provide music.
The turnout for last year’s event was strong. “About 150 people ran in the event last year and we profited around $2,000. As of right now, we have about 125 registered for this year’s 5K. This is a very active troop and the money that is [collected] goes directly back to the Scout members. The money is divided up evenly to each scout member and put into their account to help pay for trips that might be taken throughout the year,” said Dauterman.
Registration for the 5K will begin at 3:30 p.m. and the actual race will start at 4:30. Registration will cost $25.
Troop 121’s activities include volunteering to help out the community while developing leadership skills.
“In our troop we have between 23-25 Scouts. These young men work a great deal in the community. We are hopeful that they can work on their Eagle Scout projects. It is less about the actual project, but more about the leadership skills that they can develop,” said Dauterman.
“My son, Taylor, worked with Raintree in Mansfield to help make a memorial for people with disabilities and he helped make it more accessible for the handicapped. He helped put concrete down to help with wheelchair accessibility and helped create large signs for the project. There were about 260 man hours that were put into this project,” said Dauterman.
Scout members of Troop 121 stay active throughout the year.
“We try to plan a camping trip at least once a month for them. We want them out there in both the summer and winter months of the year. It teaches them how to be independent and the costs of these trips is very low. We don’t want the activities that we perform to be cost prohibitive to our Scout members. The Scouts will make their own food on these trips and it also teaches them about budgeting,” said Dauterman.
“Troop 121 is one of the oldest and most active troops in Mansfield. This troop has been established since 1950,” said Troop Committee Chairman, Tom Dorsey.
“In our troop we have between 23-25 Scouts. These young men work a great deal in the community. We are hopeful that they can work on their Eagle Scout projects. It is less about the actual project, but more about the leadership skills that they can develop,” said David Dauterman.
