Troop 4 celebrates day of service to Amesbury

AMESBURY — Boy Scout Troop 4, sponsored by the Market Street Baptist Church, celebrated a day of service to the community of Amesbury Saturday, giving over 100 “Scout hours” of work.

The day began with its bi-monthly recycling program in the upper Millyard, according to a press release. Fifteen years ago, the troop began collecting newspapers, magazines, cardboard and returnable bottles, helping residents who could not recycle using the new recycling program in Amesbury. Over the 15 years the Scouts have held the collection every other month, never missing a collection date. They have collected over half a million pounds of material that has been recycled. They have also returned over 70,000 bottles and cans to be recycled.

Many local businesses, households and even people not living in Amesbury have made the event successful for the Scouts. All of the money that is raised through the program has been used for leadership training for the Scouts. They have been able to attend week-long sessions at no charge. Many of the Scouts who have taken the advanced training have gone on to attain Scouting’s highest Award, the Eagle Scout Award.

As a way of thanking the residents of Amesbury, the Scout Troop teamed up with the Amesbury Improvement Association and Anne Ferguson, the association’s president, and spent the afternoon restoring one of Amesbury’s treasures, the Powder House, off Madison Street. It has special significance to the town and the state, as it is only one of seven left in the state. The Scouts, armed with rakes, shovels, saws and trash bags, cleaned litter from around the site, cleared brush and dead trees off the trails leading to the site and restored the area to a clean and visible site. It is hoped now that the building can be restored, as some of the bricks have started to fall out.

The Scouts will continue the recycling program and hope to work with the Amesbury Improvement Association to restore and take care of “Amesbury’s treasures.”