After years of scouting and months of waiting, Dustin Parr, 14, of Weirton Boy Scout Troop 36 got the opportunity to go to the National Council Boy Scouts of America 2010 Jamboree in Fort A.P. Hill, Va.

Parr said he looked into going for six months before finally filling in an open spot a little late in the game. He said while he was a little behind on the meetings Troop 1316, the National Council Troop Parr was with, he got through strong.

For 10 days, Parr stayed at Fort A.P. Hill Military base with more than 70,000 Boy Scouts. He said daily activities offered fun, challenge, an opportunity for religious reflections, citizenship and the international brotherhood of being with Scouts from other countries of the world. He said some of the skills activities available was the 5K Fun Run, Action Alley, Action Centers, Air-Rifle Shooting, Amateur (Ham) Radio Operators, American Indian Village hosted by the Order of the Arrow, Aquatics, Archery, Merit Badge Midway, BMX and Order of the Arrow Jamboree Adventure: The Mysterium Compass.

"I definitely want to try to fill the slot for the 2013 Summit which will be held in West Virginia," he said.

Parr said there were many things he never experienced before he got to do on his trip. He said one interesting thing was the fishing. He said 10,000 fish were put in a local lake and once a fish was caught, it could be taken to get weighed and would then be filleted which he said was "very good."

During his stay, he received several patches - including emergency medical preparedness, military patches and one designed by NASA. He said he also participated in a very popular activity hosted during the evening at the base, patch trading.

"You would see a couple hundred kids laying on blankets along the road trading patches," he said.

According to Parr, in order to earn patches one must be disciplined. He said it sometimes took a lot to be outside doing things in 110 degree heat when laying around seems like the best option. He said anyplace with air conditioning was usually packed.

Parr said many precautions were taken during his stay. He said one of the most important things a Scout needed was the lunch ticket and the heat index card. He stated the lunch ticket allowed the members to receive lunch at any kiosk around the camp, even though Scouts were not permitted to go anywhere beyond a 30 minute walk back to the commissary. He added the heat was overwhelming at times.

"It stayed over 110 degrees during the day and anything over 90 degrees required us to drink a quart of water an hour so we didn't dehydrate or suffer from heat exhaustion," he said.

As part of the Scorpion Patrol, Parr said the group walked to Arena Shows where several famous people and stunt shows were presented. He said there were individuals from Survivor and The Amazing Race, WWE Superstars and Mike Rowe of Dirty Jobs was in attendance. He said President Barack Obama was unable to attend, but sent a video sending his regards to the troops.

"We had to leave three hours early to get a good seat even though it was only a 15-minute walk," he said.

Boy Scouts were informed on the daily happenings and heat index every hour via a private radio station. Parr said songs and other information was announced on a regular basis to help keep the troops in touch with what was going on at camp.

Of his experiences, he said his top three favorites included the closing arena show, Action Alley and the armed forces exhibit.

The closing arena show consisted of one of the top five biggest fireworks shows, the Chief Scout, the President's video, WWE Superstar Sgt. Slaughter and the Golden Knights. Parr said Action Alley was one of the most popular activities at the camp. He said calls had to be made for reservations to go onto the military training course.

"It's some of the hardest stuff you will ever do," he said.

At the armed forces exhibit, Parr said it was highly interactive. He said there were strength competitions and prizes for the winners as well as a video game exhibition, pull-ups and push-ups. Parr won the competition for the 6-inch leg lift with the time of 1 minute and 30 seconds.

"The military officer there told me to just imagine I was somewhere else, somewhere lighter and it really helped," he said. "I know that sort of advice will also help me later in life, too."

Throughout his stay, Parr said it was not a choice of what you wanted to do, but choosing what you weren't going to do that day. He said there were other activities that also helped him have fun but learn about life.

"I encourage every Boy Scout in Weirton to try to go to the 2013 jamboree because it'll only be a 3-hour drive, so start saving money now," he said. "It is worth the money, time and all you have to put into it."

(Article taken from Weirton Daily Times, by Angelina Dickson)