Scouts march on Kilgore churches Saturday

A sea of blue and brown uniforms will descend upon Kilgore tomorrow morning, as nearly 150 Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, Scout Leaders and parents attend the annual 10 Commandment Hike, sponsored by the Boy Scouts of America.

The Hike begins with registration and breakfast at the First Presbyterian Church. After a short history of the Jewish faith and background to the gift of the Commandments, the boys will hear presentations of the first two commandments in the sanctuary and chapel.

Then they will hike to the next eight churches, hearing presentations of the rest of the commandments.

Churches participating in this event are First Presbyterian, St. Paul's Episcopal, First Assembly of God, Nazarene, St. Luke's Methodist, First Christian, Tri C on the Kilgore campus (Church of Christ) and Christ the King Catholic. Ministers of these churches will each present a commandment and give a brief history of their church. The boys will end the short three mile hike with a hotdog lunch at the last church.

Boys will receive participation patches, plus gain a deeper understanding of the meaning of the 10 Commandments. They will also be given a booklet of the origin of each of the churches they visit and a map and history of Kilgore. They will be encouraged to visit the historical sites of Kilgore in the afternoon.

This 10 Commandment Hike concept was begun in the East Texas Council Area eight years ago by the Catholic Committee on Scouting. It was an idea borrowed from a council in Oklahoma, and already the chairperson has been contacted by two other councils (San Antonio and Austin) in Texas for information about conducting similar hikes in their area. Although the event has been held in Longview, Tyler, and Marshall, this is the second year to be held in Kilgore.