Garden Party Scouting Fundraiser To Honor Good Deeds

Doing good deeds is one of the main lessons taught to Boy Scouts. Sometimes, those good deeds come in the form of honoring those who help others.

Next weekend, the Boy Scouts of America Jersey Shore Council will host their annual Ocean County Garden Party and will present their Good Turn Award, honoring three people who make it their mission to help others.

The Garden Party, set for Sunday, July 12 in Brick, will honor Ed and Sally Buecker of the Buecker Family Foundation and Evalyn Shippee, owner of the Jolly Tar in Bay Head.

The Buecker Family Foundation was started in 1998, after the Bueckers’ son, Bobby, died of sarcoma, a rare form of cancer, at the age of 13. Overwhelming support from the community resulted in a lot of money that was leftover after their son’s death, so they started the foundation to help others dealing with similar situations, according to an article on nj1015.com.

The charity, which was incorporated in 2006, assists about 30 families per year, the nj1015.com article said.

Shippee, whose Jolly Tar is a gift shop in Bay Head, has worked tirelessly for the betterment of the town. She was the president of the Bay Head Business Association, created Christmas in Bay Head weekend, reorganized the Bay Head Recreational Committee, helped organize and fund the Bay Head boys’ recreation soccer team and raised awareness to the community of its architecture and history and moved forward to create the Bay Head Historical Society.

The Good Turn Award was created to commemorate the 1909 experience of William D. Boyce, a Chicago publisher who became lost in a thick fog while passing through London. He was approached by a boy who offered to help him. To Boyce’s astonishment, the boy would not accept a tip because he was doing his “Good Turn.”

The Garden Party, at 29 Robbins Street, Brick, goes from 4-6 p.m. The event is co-chaired by Brick Township Police Chief Rick Bergquist, a strong supporter of Scouting, including the department’s Law Enforcement Explorer Post and Club, which are open to all Brick Township high school and middle school students.

Tickets are $100 per person and are tax deductible. Proceeds go to support our camp scholarships and programs for underprivileged Scouts in the Jersey Shore Council, which serves more than 6,000 young people in Ocean and Atlantic counties, providing them with a quality program instilling character, leadership, and a sense of positive achievement, a news release said.

To purchase tickets, contact Pina Svehla at Pina.Svehla@Scouting.org or 732-349-1037 ext. 27.