FORT KNOX, Ky. – Soldiers of Alpha Company, Special Troops Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division had a chance to give back to their community last week.

The Boy Scout Troop No. 514 out of Indianapolis came to Fort Knox and visited with the A Company engineers for an instructional class on improvised explosive devices and some basic combat engine skills.

Assistant Scout Master Patrick Sweeney coordinated the trip and said the Boy Scouts leadership had been trying to schedule something like this for the past three years.

“It wasn’t until three months ago that we were finally able to get a date set”, said Sweeney. “We are very thankful for the company commander, Capt. Ben Weakley, for allowing us here and doing this for us.”

During their visit, the boy Scouts were first greeted by the Alpha Company executive officer, 1st Lt. Eric Ng, who welcomed them and answered any of their initial questions.

Then, the Boy Scouts moved into a conference room and were given a class on improvised explosive devices, where much of the material and videos shown were from the unit’s recent deployment to Afghanistan.

From there, they were lead to an open bay for basic weapons training given by knowledgeable A Company soldiers.

The Scout Troops listened attentively as the engineers went over each weapon before being given the chance to personally handle the heavy-duty military fire arms.

After the weapons instruction, the Boy Scouts moved to their final location outside of the Company area, where they were shown a couple vehicles used by Army engineers during combat operations.

The Boy Scouts seemed to especially enjoy the mammoth counter-improvised explosive device vehicle known as “The Buffalo.” A Company soldiers put on a full demonstration of the vehicle’s capability, including operating the large hydraulic arm used for improvised explosive device searches, and allowing the Scouts to take a tour of the crew compartment.

Weakley said that events like this aren’t just good for the community, but also for his soldiers as well.

“It’s good for the soldiers to be positive role models and to give back to the community”, said Weakley. “We in A Co. were glad to host the Boy Scouts and show some of what we do. Overall, it was an amazing event.”

Weakley also added that he feels there is always time to give back to the community.

To see video footage of the event, visit www.youtube.com/user/TFDukePAO.

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