Meet the members of Troop 407, Fair Oaks Ranch’s own Scouting Troop. As an organization, 407 has been around for 40 years - originally in Boerne, it moved to FOR a few years ago and is now chartered by Spring Creek United Methodist Church. The mission of Scouting America is to prepare young people to make ethical and moral choices over their lifetimes by instilling values including being trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, and clean. Scouts are organized into Packs (for K-5th grades) and Troops (for 11–17-year-olds).

Scouts participate in outdoor activities and service projects, earning merit badges and culminating in attainment of the Eagle Scout rank, the highest honor in Scouting. While only about 4% of all participants in scouting earn this rank, Troop 407 has produced 8 Eagle Scouts in the last 5 years. 407 has weekly meetings, weekend camping trips, service projects and travels in the summer to camps both within and outside of Texas. 407 has served the local community by volunteering with local Rotaries, FORHA, their charter church, Veterans organizations, and flood relief efforts.

17-year-old Evan Peralta says that his favorite thing about scouting is “the friendships, camping, and service projects. He, like many others in 407, has been a scout since he was 6 years old. Evan has attended many summer camps over the years, most recently completing the Philmont trek in New Mexico. Evan is a Life Scout, which is one rank below Eagle.

Sebastian and Wilfred Lee finished their scouting careers in 407 after attaining their Eagle rank in January of this year. They also joined scouting as Tiger Cubs in the first grade. Sebastian enjoyed the teamwork involved in scouting, in addition to learning leadership skills; Wilfred appreciated learning practical skills and real-world knowledge. Their Eagle projects involved improvements at Kendalia Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation.

Ben Hoeppner’s favorite thing about scouting is the high adventure activities. He completed Philmont this past summer and most enjoyed the views and how quiet it was. Ben has been involved in scouting for 9 years; 4 of those as a member of 407. Ben is also a Life Scout.

Colt McCune has been in Scouting for 10 years (4 years in Cub Scouts and 6 years in Troop 407). In that time, he has been to seven different summer camps; notable ones include Camp Hale in Oklahoma and Buffalo Trails Scout Ranch in West Texas. He has two Eagle-required merit badges left to complete. His Eagle project was chosen after the scoutmaster forwarded an email from the Animal Services Head of the Boerne Police Department, who was looking for somebody to build a dog run for Vox, their new police dog. Colt is currently collecting donations toward his Eagle project and expects to begin construction in October.

Evan Hajda is the current Senior Patrol Leader for 407. He has been in scouting for 10 years and holds the Life Scout rank. Evan says, “my dad, an Eagle Scout, always keeps me motivated to work on Scouts.” His favorite thing is “the friends I have made – My scout friends know me really well.” Evan went to Philmont, and said his favorite thing was “setting up camp and sitting around the fire.” Evan already volunteers at Charming Pet Rescue and anticipates completing his Eagle Project there. 

Ryder McCune has been in scouting “for 2 years now and I really love it. My favorite thing about scouting is the campouts experience and summer camps. I love the space exploration merit badge where at the end of the badge you get to make and launch a rocket. I also love when we go canoeing during scout trips.” Ryder has been to many summer camps; “I really liked Camp Constantin where there was a nice lake breeze. Really good staff, and great food. Bear Creek was also good, for the scenery and in between a canyon. All of the campouts and fun memories along the way will never be forgotten and the useful skills that you learn will help you.” Ryan is a Star Scout and is a Patrol Leader. He gives props to their scoutmaster, explaining, “the scoutmaster, John McCune, deserves a lot of credit because he is the one that makes sure that stuff gets done. He helps plan and make the campouts happen. Our troop is boy run so the boys do the work to make stuff, and the scoutmaster and other adults make those things happen.”

Troop 407’s Scoutmaster is John McCune. Scoutmasters provide guidance, but as Ryder explained, the goal of scouting is to have troops be led by the youth members. John has been involved in Scouting for over 40 years. After attaining his Eagle rank, he continued as an adult leader through college and military service. After his kids became involved in scouts, he continued leading first in their Pack and later took the reins of 407 as Scoutmaster in 2020.

John says his favorite thing about scouting is “the outdoor activities, like camping, hiking, and canoeing; I've enjoyed those the most. However, I highly value the Scouting program's values and methods, and I enjoy sharing them with local youth and (hopefully) helping the youth develop values that include service to others, respect for all people, appreciation for nature, and citizenship. Being responsible, teamwork, and leadership are other important lesson/value areas.”

For more information about Scouting, visit (www.scouting.org) or Troop 407’s website, which is managed by the members of the troop (www.troop407boernetx.com/home).