Photo: Larry Coppock, national director of scouting ministries, breaks ground for David Merin’s, Eagle Scout project at East End UMC in Nashville.


NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Two UM churches in the Nashville area have sponsored Boy Scout troops for 100 years.

Brentwood UMC began Troop 1, and East End UMC began Troop 3 in 1910, the same year the national organization was formed.

“I think it is a commitment to the next generation through thick and thin that has kept this congregation alive and viable and allowed us to celebrate for Troop 3 a century of continued service,” said Diane Bloom, pastor of the East End congregation.

David Merin, 17, a member of Troop 3, is building a 10-by-25-foot arbor in the church park to for his Eagle project. "I feel like I am a totally better person for [scouting],” said Merin. “We have so much fun. We learn how to deal with uncomfortable situations with a level head.”