Coutesy of Judi Light Hopson, Emma H. Hopson and Ted Hagen
McClatchy-Tribune News Service – McClatchy-Tribune News Service via COMTEX
Aug 05, 2013
Do you sometimes worry that adults are leaving a challenging world to the next generation? If so, encourage a teenager in your life to do something positive.
In 1999, when Evan Hunsberger was just 13, he approached his Boy Scout leaders about an idea for an Eagle Scout project. Evan, now married with two children, saw his project become a reality.
He talked with Larry Coppock, national director, scouting ministries, United Methodist Church, about an old, worn book he’d found in his grandfather’s World War II memorabilia. The pocket-size inspirational book was distributed to military personnel in World War II and the Korean Conflict to help them keep going in tough situations.
Evan voiced his desire to engage people to rework the book for both military personnel and America’s first responders. A special edition for Scouts is nearing publication as well.
“The original book, titled ‘Strength for Service to God and Country,’ provided an inspirational story and daily devotional text,” Larry Coppock explained to us in a recent interview.
“The Pentagon ordered copies and distributed them to over one million individuals in the military during World War II,” Coppock said. “The text included stories and devotions pertinent to the Jewish, Christian, and Islamic faiths.”
The updated version of this book is still going out to military personnel around the world, but a new edition titled, “Strength for Service to God and Community,” has been created specifically for our country’s first responders, including police chaplains, firefighters, paramedics, and emergency medical personnel. Evan’s non-profit group pays for everything through sponsors…