By Aldrich Tan/Staff writer

July 13, 2005

Jay Lovelady is ready for the trip of a lifetime.

Lovelady, 17, and his brother Carter, 15, members of Visalia Boy Scout Troop 310, raised $3,000 each through fund-raisers and delivering newspapers to attend the National Boy Scout Jamboree, a national gathering every four years of 40,000 Boy Scouts at Fort A.P. Hill, Va.

The Loveladys are among eight Boy Scouts from Visalia and 36 from the Valley who will attend the jamboree, which starts July 25 and runs until Aug. 3. There will be stops in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., before and after the jamboree.

All eight raised the money they needed for the trip. Some worked, others got it from their families and some did both.

"I really wanted to go to the jamboree, and that kept me motivated to raise the money for the trip," Jay Lovelady said.

Colin Thomure, 17, and his brother Devin, 15, from Troop 3301 in Visalia, paid for their trip from a bank account that their grandmother gave them.

"It was a good investment," said Thomure, who is going to be a senior at Exeter Union High School.

"It's my first trip on my own," said Courtlan Hall, 14, also a member of Troop 3301. He will be a sophomore at El Diamante High School in Visalia.

Some of the area scouts talked about what they are looking forward to.

Cory John, 16, from Troop 310 is excited about the Washington, D.C., tour.

"I was watching a video in my U.S. history summer school class at Redwood High School, and I thought to myself, `I'm going to be there!' It's just so awesome," John said.

John will be a junior at El Diamante.

While at the jamboree, Iain Fisher, 13, from Troop 3301, said he hopes to get some Eagle Scout-required merit badges, such as environmental science and swimming. He will be an eighth-grader at Green Acres Middle School in Visalia.

Devin Thomure said he is looking forward to buying collectible miniature cannons.

"They are top of the line and are exact replicas of the original historical cannons," he said.

Boy Scouts can also participate in a variety of events and activities, such as rock climbing, buckskin games and scuba diving.

Jay Lovelady said he wants to try out as a radio disc jockey for the jamboree's official radio station. He said he hopes to pursue a career in sound editing.

"I'm hoping to do something I've never done before and may never have a chance to do again," he said.

The reporter can be reached at atan@visalia.gannett.com.

Johanna Coyne/Times-Delta

Boy Scouts from Visalia troops 3301 and 310 will go to the National Boy Scout Jamboree in Washington, D.C. Jay Lovelady, 17, shows off the badge from the jamboree. Surrounding him are, from left, Courtlan Hall, 14, Devin Thomure, 15, Colin Thomure, 17, Connor Fisher, 15, rear left. Carter Lovelady, 15, Zack Huddleston, 15, Cory John, 16, rear right, and Andrew Moore, 12, are going to the event, which runs July 25 through Aug. 3.
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