The Girl Scout House on Ann Street is an old part of Festus, but even so, few of the neighboring houses can boast of holding up as long as it has. Or of looking as good. Next year marks the house’s centennial, and with the kind of support it’s been getting from the likes of Festus High junior Jonah Ashby, it’s anyone’s guess how long it will stand.
Using material donated by local merchants and individuals, Ashby led a small group of Pevely-area Boy Scouts in a general fix-up of the home. The project marks a big step towards Ashby’s becoming an Eagle Scout, one of scouting’s highest distinctions.
Girl Scout House treasurer Jan Gebhardt estimates that the Twin City Rotary, the Twin City Community Chest, Ashby and other donor/volunteers saved the Girl Scouts “several thousand dollars,” with their gifts.
To qualify as an Eagle candidate, Scouts have to do something positive for the community, explained Ashby, who is no stranger to civic work. Since joining the Scouts seven years ago, he has cleaned up graveyards and public areas.
“I think it’s very important work,” he said. “If you don’t do these things they won’t get done, because (groups like Gebhardt’s) might not have money.”
“It’s fulfilling work. You feel like you’ve done something that’s meaningful. Sometimes my friends wonder why I do this, but I do it because I like it.”
Ashby’s assignment was to supervise and plan the fix-up project and to do most of the labor.
A YMCA camp counselor during the week, Ashby put off most of the Ann Street work until the weekends. Gutters were removed, the old paint scraped off and new put on by Ashby and workmates C.J. and Carl Banks, Tony Armbruster, Matt Stansfield and Jonah’s younger brother Simon. A member of troopmaster Chuck Banks’ Troop 467, Ashby is the son of Regina and Dennis Ashby. Dennis also pitched in on the Girl Scout House. The job took four weeks out of the summer.
“It rained on us a few days and it got pretty hot, but we got it done,” Jonah said.
The Festus-Crystal City Rotary Club invested approximately $1,500 into a new roof and gutters for the house.
“We perceived that replacing the rood would be the greatest hardship for the Girl Scouts,” said Robert Taylor, Rotary president when the project began. “We tried to identify an area of the community in which we could make an impact, especially focusing on our young people.” The Rotary project was begun last fall. Eighty to 100 local Brownies and Girl Scouts have used the Festus house annually since 1955, nearly 50 years after its building. (Actually the house may be older than 99 years; the Scouts have a title that goes back to 1898, but it does not give a construction date.)
Gebhardt is grateful for the volunteer help. The work frees up the budget for projects other than upkeep.
“This means we can operate the Scout house for a lot longer for a lot less cost. We’ve gotten a new roof, a new furnace, new guttering, Jonah’s paint job and all that for free,” she said. “Paint alone is a big expense.”
“We’ll probably need work on the foundation, but I suppose we can get another 20 years out of this house.”
A handful of lesser assignments stand between Ashby and his Eagle Scout ranking. He figures he can make his goal by the end of the year.
One thing is certain: unlike other teens in the Scouts, Ashby isn’t ribbed or made sport of by his classmates because of his civic-mindedness. Jonah plays the offensive line in football and tosses the shot in track for the Festus Tigers. He’s 5-foot-10 and weighs 195 pounds. It’s an ideal weight and size for ripping down old gutters.
