General Information

42 Years of Service to Moraga
1961 - 2001

Overview

Troop 212 is a community troop sponsored by Moraga Valley Presbyterian Church. The Troop has been charted for 52 years; it was organized in Moraga 42 years ago by Tom "Pop" Clarke, Scoutmaster Emeritus. The Troop meets every Tuesday night from 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the "Scout Hut", the little red-and-white building located across Moraga Way from the Moraga Fire Station.

There are currently 62 boys, ages 11 to 18, actively participating in the Troop. The Scoutmaster is Tom "Mac" McIntosh, who is assisted by 6 trained Assistant Scoutmasters.

The Troop sponsors a variety of outdoor activities, with an outing occurring every month except December. Weekend outings include campouts, short hikes, water-skiing, snow skiing and snow camping. Week-long high adventure activities include backpack treks in the Grand Canyon, in the High Sierras, at Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico, in Alaska and the Yukon Territory, and at the Quetico Canoe Base in Northern Minnesota. All of these high adventure treks are led by trained and experienced adult trek leaders.

The Troop's motto is "Advancement, Spirit, Attendance". The Troop operates a boy-lead program in accordance with rules of conduct that are consistent with what one expects from Boy Scouts. The purposes of the Troop's programs are to teach camping, backpacking, and related skills, and to enjoy the out-of-doors and the fellowship of scouting. The goals of the Troop's programs are to teach and develop leadership skills, to help boys grow and develop into responsible young men and good citizens, and to develop a wholesome respect for and reverence toward God.

If you would like information regarding scouting in general or Troop 212 in particular, contact the scoutmaster.

History

In 1961, Tom "Pop" Clarke, a resident of Moraga, a holder of the Eagle Award like his father and, ultimately, himself the father of two Eagles, became aware of the need for a quality scouting program in the community. He obtained the sponsorship of the Moraga Merchants Association, obtained the Troop 212 charter and started meeting in the old Moraga School. Thus, 42 years of excellence in scouting were begun.

In the 42 years that Troop 212 has been in Moraga, it has had only three scoutmasters: Pop Clark from 1961 to 1974, John "Zim" Zimmerlin during 1970, and Tom "Mac" McIntosh from 1974 to the present. It is this stability of dedicated leadership that has contributed so much to the high quality of the Troop's program and its fine traditions.

The Troop has enjoyed the services of 30 dedicated men who have served as assistant scoutmasters. Currently, there are six assistants. These men are Rick Hazard, Bob Merson, Dr. Dick Terry, Nelson Wilkerson, Glenn Martin and Matt Kimball.

Almost 600 Moraga, Lafayette and Orinda boys have participated in the Troop. Of these, 265 have earned the rank of Eagle, the highest award that a scout can earn in scouting. This means that about 44% of the boys who enter the Troop earn the Eagle Award; this compares to a national average of about 1%.

The Troop has conducted weekly meetings in the same place for the past 38 years; the little red and while building across from the Moraga Fire Station, which is referred to as "the Hut" or "the Scout Hut." This property is owned by the Russell Bruzzone family who very generously have permitted the Troop to use it rent-free during all these years.

The Troop's program has and continues to consist of monthly camping outings, Sierra wilderness camps, high Sierra backpack treks, special high adventure treks to Philmont, New Mexico, Grand Canyon and Alaska, bike treks to Oregon, Germany, the Canadian Rockies and canoe treks to Utah and the Yukon Territory of Canada. Other activities are organized and sponsored by the Troop's boy-run honor camping society, the Troop 212 Mountaineers. Training emphasis is on citizenship, leadership, the virtues expressed in the Scout Oath and Law and on all types of scouting skills, including first aid, cooking, camping, hiking, knots, lashings, pioneering and proper use of knife and ax.

Service to the community is an integral part of scouting and Troop 212. Every year the Troop provides Eagle Scout candidates who perform service projects for the churches, schools, parks department and other town and community organization in Moraga.

The Troop is sponsored by Moraga Valley Presbyterian Church, which has provided sponsorship and use of facilities for the past 33 years.

Assistant Scoutmaster Roll Call

Hank Bierman3 Bo Bocheff3 Al Clark  Steve Clark2 Bruce Cunningham  Brint Deighton  Bill Edwards  Steve Hansen1 Bob Hayes  Rick Hazard1

Bill Horsfall  Larry Jacobs2 Matt Kimball1 Brian Lawrence  Bill Loomis3 Glenn Martin1 Bruce McIntosh2 Tom McIntosh1 Al Meade3 Bob Merson1

Jim Mitchell  Jerry Patchen II2 Duane Rasmussen  Paul Schraeder  Dr. Dick Terry1 Gene Turner1 Dr. Robert Walcott  Marv Wiegman  Nelson Wilkerson1 Zim Zimmerlin3

1Currently in service

2Former Troop 212 Eagle

3Deceased