The boys of Cub Scout Pack 8 in Pittsfield are the first Scouts in Massachusetts to earn the ScoutStrong Healthy Unit patch.
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Pam Burton, the roundtable commissioner of Cub Scout Pack 8 in Pittsfield, has a job that revolves around food.
As cook manager for Egremont Elementary School, she is already tuned in to good nutrition for kids. So when asked to lead her Cub Scouts on a healthy journey, she jumped right in.
Burton trained on the ScoutStrong Healthy Unit patch, given by Healthy Kids Out of School, an initiative of ChildObesity180 at Tufts University. Regional funding is provided by the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation.
She then guided her 30 Cub Scouts ranging from kindergartners to fifth-graders through the steps to complete the patch, becoming the first Scouts in Massachusetts and the second in all of New England to earn it.
In Massachusetts more than 25 percent of school-age children are overweight or obese, and a study published by the New England Journal of Medicine suggests that as a result of this epidemic, children today may have a shorter life expectancy than their parents.
At the April 15 meeting of Pack 8, Burton awarded the boys with their patch and congratulated them for learning how to be healthy. While it was special to earn the patch, Burton said it was not far outside the realm of regular Scouting activities.
"We're already basically doing this in Scouts. We just tied it in together," she said.
During the six or so months they worked on earning the patch, the boys did a lot of outdoor activities to emphasize the importance of exercise, changed their snacks to encompass more fruits and water instead of sweets and juice or soda, and talked about good personal hygiene habits like brushing teeth. They created a poster in which actual packs of table sugar illustrated how much sugar is in drinks like juice and soda.
"We definitely found out that soda is not good for you," Burton laughed, pointing to all of the sugar packs hanging next to the picture of soda on the poster.
The juice and its several accompanying packets of sugar might have come as more of a surprise, though.
"I thought juice has two packs of sugar," said fourth-grader Simeon Mercier, who has been a Cub Scout for four years.
That kind of eye-opening education — outside of school — is what the program aims to accomplish.
"We know that leaders of out-of-schooltime programs are often busy parent volunteers with limited time to take on additional responsibilities," said Alyssa Koomas, regional project manager for Healthy Kids Out of School. “By working with Boy Scouts of America to create the Healthy Unit Patch, we were able to support leaders in promoting healthy eating and physical activity by using an already recognized reward system — the patch.”
Burton agreed that the patch itself was a powerful incentive for the kids, who love to show off with they have learned with additions to their uniform shirts.
"They really strive when there's something to work for," she said.
And how did earning the patch make the boys feel?
"Happy and proud," said second-grader Brady Street, who has been a Scout for two years. "Staying healthy is safe and important."
For additional information about getting an out-of-schooltime program involved in this initiative, visit the Healthy Kids Hub.
pittsfield.com welcomes critical, respectful dialogue. Name-calling, personal attacks, libel, slander or foul language is not allowed. All comments are reviewed before posting and will be deleted or edited as necessary.
MEMBER SIGN IN
.JPG)
The boys of Cub Scout Pack 8 in Pittsfield are the first Scouts in Massachusetts to earn the ScoutStrong Healthy Unit patch. 
