SCOUTS PLANT TREES AT HOLCOMB

Proper tools are needed to finish a job, and to get through life, one needs educational tools like reading, math, science and history, says Nell Holcomb principal Jack Mann.

Mann told Nell Holcomb fourth-graders about the essentials of good education at an assembly Tuesday. Afterwards, a group of Boy Scouts planted 10 Dogwood trees along the school driveway.

The tree-plantings were part of a service project completed by Den 3 of Boy Scout Pack 17. The pack is sponsored by the Parent Teacher Organization at the school.

The dwarf trees were donated by Jeri and Doug Holcomb, assistant troop leaders.

"It all begins with the tools in your toolbox," Mann said, as he reached into a toolbox to pull out a copy of "The Velveteen Rabbit."

"Reading opens the world to you," he said. "Knowledge is a tool."

Other tools needed in life are math skills, science, history, physical education, art and music, he said, adding that most are taught in school.

One of the most overlooked tools is often a child's parents. "You parents are walking, talking encyclopedias of life," he said. "They are the voice of experience."

Experience was exactly what the 10 Boy Scouts needed to earn a scholar badge. To qualify for the badge, the boys had to complete a project that would benefit the school, troop leaders said.

Planting of the trees helped beautify the school at the same time the Scouts earned a badge, said Margaret Yates, a troop leader. In addition to the plantings, the Scouts completed an organizational chart of the school district that lists school board members and staff.

The pack meets three times a month to work on badges and patches.