By SUSAN LYNCH
CV&T Contributor
Every year on Memorial Day weekend, members of the American Legion gather in the early morning hours with some young friends.
The Boy Scouts from Troops 144 and 89 come dressed in full uniform to honor those who served our country and have since passed away. This tradition started in Estill County in 1991 with a small Cub Scout troop and only a handful of Boy Scouts.
Since that time 25 years ago, the tradition has grown into something amazing.
Estill County has around 300 cemeteries, most of which have at least one veteran buried inside. The American Legion wanted to be sure that all of the brave men and women were recognized for their service by placing flags on every grave.
“Oakdale Cemetery alone has around 100 veteran-marked graves,” Pleas McIntosh said, so this wasn’t a task that could be easily be done alone.
Recruiting some able-bodied scouts was just the answer they were looking for though.
Bill Tucker said, “We couldn’t do it without them, they are a tremendous help. They take the big cemeteries and leave us the smaller ones.”
This year there were around 60 scouts, parents, and for the first time ever, girl scouts as well came out to volunteer their time, honoring our heroes.
After a morning full of hard work, the troops met back at the American Legion where they were served a hot lunch and given t-shirts.
Since Memorial day of 2015, another 42 veterans have passed away in Estill County. If you know of a veteran’s grave that needs a flag, you can contact Bill Tucker, Pleas McIntosh, or anyone else available at the post at 606-723-4716.
For information on Cub Scouts (grades 1-5) contact Shayne Puckett 859-200-1522, for information regarding Boy Scouts (6 grade and up) feel free to attend a meeting. Troop 89 meets every Monday night at 6:30 at Irvine United Methodist Church, and Troop 144 meets every Monday night at 6:30 at the Court House.
Noah Rettenburg Cub Scout Troop 144
Troop Leader Jason Baber explains the importance of the placement of the flag to his son Aidan.
Shelby Goe is one of the 6 Girl Scouts that came from troop 7182.