Thieves steal local Boy Scout troop's camping gear
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PUYALLUP, Wash. - Members of a local Boy Scout troop are incredulous and frustrated after thieves stole hundreds of dollars worth of camping equipment from them.
Missing are backpacks, tools, ropes and a lot more after someone broke into Troop 503's storage shed in the parking lot of Pilgrim Church of Puyallup.
"This is what's left of our deadbolt - you can see where they pried it open," says troop leader Chris Gill. "We had coolers and water coolers in here for the boys that are all gone. Five camp stoves are gone ..."
The thieves also took several tents. Each one had the troop number proudly stenciled on the side.
It all really hit Blake Secrest and his 39 fellow scouts pretty hard.
"Why would someone be mad at a troop when we do community service?" he says. "You know - it's a Boy Scout troop."
The scouts don't know who did it, and the church doesn't have surveillance cameras. Parents are frustrated, too, after the kids held fund-raiser after fund-raiser to get enough money to buy the gear.
"They're the ones that spent all the time and the effort on everything, trying to make the money to buy nice equipment," says frustrated parent Tim Greminger.
Now there are empty shelves, empty feelings and this message from Troop 503: "If you stole our stuff - do the right thing, just give it back."
The troop is trying to piece together equipment for a camping trip in two weeks. So far, investigators don't have any leads.
Missing are backpacks, tools, ropes and a lot more after someone broke into Troop 503's storage shed in the parking lot of Pilgrim Church of Puyallup.
"This is what's left of our deadbolt - you can see where they pried it open," says troop leader Chris Gill. "We had coolers and water coolers in here for the boys that are all gone. Five camp stoves are gone ..."
The thieves also took several tents. Each one had the troop number proudly stenciled on the side.
It all really hit Blake Secrest and his 39 fellow scouts pretty hard.
"Why would someone be mad at a troop when we do community service?" he says. "You know - it's a Boy Scout troop."
The scouts don't know who did it, and the church doesn't have surveillance cameras. Parents are frustrated, too, after the kids held fund-raiser after fund-raiser to get enough money to buy the gear.
"They're the ones that spent all the time and the effort on everything, trying to make the money to buy nice equipment," says frustrated parent Tim Greminger.
Now there are empty shelves, empty feelings and this message from Troop 503: "If you stole our stuff - do the right thing, just give it back."
The troop is trying to piece together equipment for a camping trip in two weeks. So far, investigators don't have any leads.
Some of these comments are really disturbing. Pro-gay people seem to be so vindictive and vicious if every last person and organization isn't all about being gay. Think about it- you have an all-male organization that people entrust their little boys to, if they allow openly gay leaders, how long do you think that is going to last? You have to recognize reality. If you don't like it- start your own organization!
 @Willow What I find disturbing about your post is that you are implying that being Gay is also somehow connected to being a pedophile. While there ARE some Gay pedophiles the vast majority are heterosexual men, the same as Scout leaders.
 @Furd What I find disturbing is that this "other" subject is even a topic of discussion at all... as it has NOTHING TO DO with the story about how filthy scum stole camping gear from the Scouts!
 @TheTruncheon I agree.
Strange, this same thing just happened in Kitsap a couple weeks ago. After it was publicized, the thieves dumped some of the items back on the scene during the night but kept the things, I suspect, that they could pawn more easily. http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2012/oct/04/equipment-stolen-from-boy-scouts-anonymously/
It is unbelievable how some of the idiots who are posting on here believe these boys deserved to have their camping gear stolen, all because of a policy that was made at the national level!! I hate when people call names, but I can't think of anything else to call them but idiots!!! Like someone said below, that is like punishing the child for the actions of the parent. Yes, you can disagree and vent about the powers that be who made the policy, but how did these LOCAL kids deserve to have their gear stolen??? Some people!! SMH
Really sad how some posters here use a despicable act against these kids as a forum to stir up cr@p. No reason for it. Don't like the organization, fine but don't hold the political leanings of the org against children just because you don't agree with it. The BSA have done many things well over the years, as have many other orgs/religions/institutions. I don't agree with the policies of most but then it isn't up to me to force my opinion upon them either.
 @theToucan Maybe it's because the "it's for the children" line has been way over used over the years. Sorry personally their equipment got stolen, but the the scouts can go get bent.
Might put out a search of pawn shops for the more valuable items.
This also happened in Silverdale a few weeks back. Are people this desperate ?Â
What kind of "community service" is it to deny a young man his Eagle Scout Badge after the years of hard work and commitment he put in to attain it? Â You want to talk about theft? Â THAT'S theft. Â Sorry boy scouts, you lost all your shine for me the instant you revealed yourselves as one of the biggest bunch of homophobic hypocrites in the country. I'm sorry I ever exposed my sons to you - if I had it to do over, I sure as he// wouldn't.
 @fyrefawx I, too, am appalled at the bigotry shown by the "powers that be" in Scouting but I don't want to take it out on the boys.
 @fyrefawx Why was the boy denied ? If he had achieved his goals as set forth in the Boy Scouts,he would have gotten his award.Â
 @Maynard G Krebbs Sadly it's true. He sent a letter to his leaders and the other scouts in his troup announcin he is gay. BSA also is under the impression that he is atheist (another big no-no for BSA) while his parents dispute that, claiming he is in fact agnostic. So BSA revoked his membership before awarding him his Eagle Rank. He had completed his service project and paperwork, all that was required was his troup leader's signature, but he refused. The family is in the process of appealling to BSA to award it even though it's against national's policies.
 @Furd Yes I've heard it, and I know for a fact that there are boys in the scouts who are atheists. My son is a scout, and to a lot of boys, it's just something to recite.
 @traceywo Have you ever heard or read the Scout oath? "To god and my country..." No atheist is going to make an oath to a god.
@MHunt @Maynard G Krebbs Just to set you straight, there are no rules in the BSA against being an atheist. There are some troops that are faith-based troops (LDS or Latter Day Saints), but it is not a "big no-no" as you put it to be an atheist.Â
 @Maynard G Krebbs He was denied his medal because he is GAY.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/scout-sends-eagle-badge-gay-teen-article-1.1179351
Likely the thieves were meth heads trying to make a quick score at a pawn shop. Not going to happen with the troops number stenciled on the side of the tents. At the most they would get a are a few dollars for the aluminum frame work. I hope that the tents and equipment show up in a few days so that the scouts can have their camping trip.
Gee...thinking outside the box...Who would be mad at the Boy Scouts? hmmm... I wonder if it could be...let's guess. Who has a beef with the Boy Scouts? hmm... Let me think...this happened at a Christian Church too...hmm Could it be possible?
 @Mark Or, more likely, it was a bunch of druggies hoping to sell stuff for their next fix.
 @Mark It doesn't matter who took it or why.... just give it back to the kids.... Anything could've happened. A thief is a thief regardless of intentions... (just a thought) I started to get caught up in speculations too.... decided against it. My first thoughts were angry ones as to what happened too!
Agree...Just a thought...
 @Mark It's crazy in our shared world with "hate" I catch myself more than a little getting sucked into it! There's many things to be angry about these days. I have been trying super hard to love it's hard when so many bad things keep happening. :D)
I'll again offer my two-burner propane camp stove. No propane tank but it can use any regular tank.
 @Furd I have a tent that only has a small hole in the bug screen... super easy fix. I have a kelty tent...
I'm sure the generosity of the community will solve this problem in very little time. There will always be those who will take what's not theirs, but I hope the leader will use this as an opportunity to teach these boys that they can and will overcome this and go on with things.Â
Please give the children back their camping equipment......
Despicable... Â I have several tents I could donate - where can I send them to?
Friday night my daughter's friends car was broken into and her bag full of stuff was stolen - We have told her repeatedly not to leave anything of value in a car but she figured that running into a friend's dorm room to drop off something was not enough time for a thief to break in and get anything. WRONG...... they busted the window and grabbed the bag in probably under 30 seconds. Thieves are everywhere, on the island car burgs are rampant. Do not leave valuables in your car people, I learned my lesson the hard way back in 1999 when after a ballgame I left my purse in the trunk, laptop, etc and drove a Honda - it was all taken including 400 in cash.
Again? Why od people do this? I like Achoo2's idea; check the homeless camp.
Just check the closest homless camp and look for the spiffiest campsite.
Hope the police will find the crooks and get them locked up.
That's what they get for allowing discriminatory policies to stay in place. Fools.Â
Just an FYI, national does not want nor care what a local boy scout troup or cub scout den says or feels about their gay/lesbian policies. On a local level we couldn't give a dang as long as you stepped up, was involved with your son and followed through on what you committed yourself to doing. I know personally I am deeply ashamed and disagree with BSA and have written national and local council on that fact, however I also know it won't do a bit of good. It's just one more voice in a storm of voices that they continue to ignore convinced that "they know better".
 @LeftWing Unfortunately I have to agree. Sorry BSA, it's called Karma. You discriminate it always comes back on you. I cannot support a group of people who have such a myopic view on others beliefs and against people who through no fault of their own happen to be born different than everyone else. This is the 21st century but the Boy Scout leadership runs the program like it were the Dark ages.
Notice that the boy scouts have secret files known as the perversion files that keeps track of child molesters and perverts. Most of those perverts are married heterosexual men and they hide the records from the public and the authorities instead turning them over and stopping a vicious cycle. Yet gay men are less likely to molest children. They are discriminated against for no other reason than being gay.
Â
 The Child Welfare Information Gateway (previously National Adoption Information Clearinghouse) as stating, "A child's risk of being molested by his or her relatives' heterosexual partner is over one hundred times greater than by someone who might be identifiable as being homosexual." The study also found that of 269 cases of child sex abuse, only two offenders where found to be gay or lesbian. The American Psychological Association agrees, "Another myth about homosexuality is the mistaken belief that gay men have more of a tendency than heterosexual men to sexually molest children. There is no evidence to suggest that homosexuals molest children." So from just
these statistics alone we have a .0074% chance of a gay man being a child molester.
Â
Yes I feel bad that the kids had their things stolen and I hope they catch the perpetrators.It was also great that the public has pitched in to help.
Â
Unfortunately I still refuse to support groups such as the BSA/GSA who discriminate against people out of ignorance and unfounded fear.
 @Luciferian  @LeftWing In your ridiculous world you would punish the child for the actions of the parent... :(
 @Luciferian  @LeftWing Two questions: What does any of that have to do with what has happened to these kids? Do kids make those choices listed?
 @LeftWing Since when do two wrongs make a right? The kids do not make the organizations policies and they DO NOT deserve to suffer for them.
 @leftwing:Â
Really? Your rant has absolutely NOTHING whatsoever to do with the "troop level" - these boys have no say-so in national's policies one way or the other. They do good throughouht the neighborhood, woked hard to raise the funds to purchase their gear. It is simply wrong for someone to steal it.