The Cascade Pacific Council of the Boy Scouts of America, which covers 18 counties of Northwest Oregon and Southwest Washington, recently announced the winners of the Silver Beaver Award, the top honor given to local volunteers.
Among the 14 winners was La Center resident Bruce Johnson, assistant scoutmaster for Troop 310 in the Fort Vancouver District. Johnson has been an adult leader for 16 years. He has helped with maintenance and general upkeep at some Boy Scouts of America-owned facilities, including building chuck wagons and rebuilding a horse arena at the Butte Creek Camp in Scott Mills, Ore., and aiding in remodeling bathrooms at Aubrey Watzek Lodge at Mount Hood. Johnson has been the competition chair for the Fort Vancouver District Camporee for 14 years, including organizing and developing the building of materials for the competition. He served as a quartermaster and committee member for Troop 310 and den leader and cubmaster for Pack 303.
Outside of scouting, Johnson is a mechanical engineer at Hewlett-Packard. In conjunction with his employer, he ran a family math and science night from 2006 through 2010. He has helped at Second Chance companions, a no-kill shelter in Battle Ground, and also runs a business on the side called Berry Best Farms, where he provides berries for Highland Lutheran Church and La Center Little League. He was an assistant coach for the Little League team from 2004 to 2010.
The award was introduced in 1931 to recognize “exceptional adults who make an impact on the lives of our youth,” according to a news release. Candidates are nominated by the greater scouting community and recipients are chosen by a review group made up of previous years’ award recipients. Recipients were recognized at the Court of Honor celebration on March 21 at Mt. Hood Community College in Gresham, Ore.
