Durham Reporter

One of the things scouting teaches youngsters is to be trustworthy. The Durham Boy Scout Troop 486 recently found out that not all people abide by that standard as someone stole the troop’s trailer from a church parking lot earlier this month.

"It's unfortunate that in this day and age you can't trust anybody. The first part of the scout law is that a scout is trustworthy,” David Bailey, committee chair of Boy Scout Troop 486, said in a WTVD report.

"It's just sad that someone takes from someone else,” he continued. “We would love to get it back, so if that's possible, please bring it back. But I don't see that happening."

The surveillance video footage from the morning of Sept. 14 shows a pickup truck pulling into the parking lot of Christus Victor Lutheran Church. The truck stops near where Troop 486's trailer was parked, but then the video cut out, the report said.

The trailer held camping and cooking equipment, as well as personal gear of Scout leaders and volunteers. The equipment was valued at more than $4,000 for the contents and $3,600 for the trailer, Bailey said.

"Hopefully it doesn't change (the troop's) view of their fellow neighbors, but it's always a life lesson and you want to be able to move on,” Bailey said.

Fortunately, the theft didn’t affect the troop’s plan for a trip to Kerr Lake this weekend. They’ll just adapt and overcome.

"The scouts will bring some of their own personal gear,” Bailey said. “I know a lot of the adults are pitching in who might have tents or stoves. So, we'll make do, and then we'll plan to replace all that stuff, maybe with another fundraiser."