GRANITE FALLS, NC (July 9, 2021) — Scouts Troop 263 located in Rhodhiss, chartered by First United Methodist, Granite Falls have adopted New Farm Road. The adopt A Highway (AAH) program is a four-year commitment to pick up litter once every three months.
In scouting, Scouts are taught to “Leave No Trace” and leave things better than you find them. Troop 263 is also trying to bring back the Slogan from 1971, Woodsy the Owl, Give a Hoot, Don’t Pollute. So, it is only natural that when the AAH idea came up, Troop 263 was eager to do their part.
One of our scouts, Ethan Hodge had a sister pass away in 2018 from Acute lymphoblastic Leukemia. Her name was, Allison Hodge (15 yrs. old) and she loved her town of Granite Falls and she loved scouting and wanted her brothers to make it to Eagle Scout one day. We decided to honor her family by making our AAH sign In Loving Memory (ILMO) of her, the precious soul taken to soon.
Allison’s mother, Jennifer Bowman said, “New Farm Road is such a beautiful stretch of road. I really enjoy being able to have that connection and helping the county at the same time. I just came across the silly social media post where Allison and I had talked about the Adopt a Highway program and how she wanted to purchase a road of her own one day. Thanks to all who helped her dream come a possibility. She would be very proud! As a long time, Scout Mom of two boys, I am thrilled that Troop 263 and Pack 260 are a big part of this. Together we can continue to honor Allison Hodge while making a difference in our beautiful community. July 1st, 2021, Allison would have celebrated her 18th birthday.
Scoutmaster, Chuck Heavner said, “It is always an honor to be able to help our community and to teach our Scouts to lead by example. Honoring Allison and in a way all of those that leave us too soon only makes it more special.”
To join scouting and get more information go to BeAScout.scouting.org or to find out how you and your group can adopt a highway go to ncdot.gov.
Article Courtesy of Scoutmaster Chuck Heavner