Members of the Tamaqua Boy and Cub Scouts Pack 777 went above and beyond during a non-perishable food drive held recently to benefit the Tamaqua Salvation Army. The drive was part of their 26th Annual Hawk Mountain Council Boy Scouts of America 2012 Scouting For Food Drive.

The first stage of the food drive involved scouts placing labeled bags on hundreds of neighbors homes.The second stage required the scouts to go door-to-door picking up the donations for transport to the Tamaqua Salvation Army.Scouts then spent a couple hours in the gymnasium of the Salvation Army sorting and counting all the donations they raised."The scouts that participated rally put a lot of work into this project," said Den Leader, scout parent and 10-year volunteer Pete DeAngelo."These scouts are learning learning how to help the community as well as building their social skills," said Den Leader Robert Bacert."It feels great to help people who don't have as much as we do," said volunteer Ashley DeAngelo.Organizers stressed their appreciation to the area residents that took the time to donate to the drive.If you want to help or get involved with the cub or boy scouts, call Scott Winterburn at (570) 527-2006."These scouts understand that many families don't have much, and their efforts go a long way," said scout parent and long-time volunteer Julie DeAngelo."We are extremely grateful for the generous donation of time and food from all the hard-working scouts and parents," said Major Sharon Whispell, Tamaqua Salvation Army. "Without donations from the community, we wouldn't be able to help so many less fortunate families during the Thanksgiving and Christmas season."