Herald Neighbors

Boy Scouts become East Rockaway village officials for a night

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Boy Scouts from Lynbrook and East Rockaway took on the roles of East Rockaway’s village officials on Feb. 13 as part of the annual Good Government Night.
Boy Scouts from Lynbrook and East Rockaway took on the roles of East Rockaway’s village officials on Feb. 13 as part of the annual Good Government Night.
Melissa Koenig/Herald

Boy Scouts from Troops 332 and 121 and Pack 84 had an opportunity to participate in local government at the East Rockaway village board meeting on Feb. 13. As part of the annual Good Government Night, the scouts took on the roles of village officials. They approved minutes, shared reports and led the Pledge of Allegiance.

“It’s an opportunity where they have some responsibility and they basically have to run the meeting, and they did a great job,” Mayor Bruno Romano said.

One of the principles of the Boy Scouts of America is to participate in civic duties, and each Boy Scout must have some sort of government leadership, according to its official website.

“There’s a strong correlation between what they learn in scouting and their civic responsibility,” said Frank Honerkamp, the scoutmaster of troop 332. “We also want to show that support back to our communities and teach our young folks why that’s so important, so they come and they participate in these meetings.”

Romano said he believes that this annual event also helps the younger citizens learn more about the village government. “This is a very good venue that they can actually see what the process of legislation is here in the village of East Rockaway,” he said.

Honerkamp’s son Frankie, 16, is a Life Scout. He shared the same sentiment as the mayor. “I think it’s a really good experience for the younger guys to find out what actually goes on in a government environment,” he said, “and to really learn what goes on in a government instead of just focusing on like ‘Oh no Trump.’”

According to Ed Schenk, the troop committee chairperson, Good Government Night began in East Rockaway in the late 1960s, and then stopped for several years. It was readopted around 1997, he added, when Lynbrook brought in the same program. The Lynbrook village board will host their Good Government Night on March 20.