Every April, the country sets aside one day to celebrate the beautiful Earth that we all reside on. Lush forests, sparkling waterfalls, multitudes of trails, national parks and magnificent cities that surround us in everyday life.
Back in 1971, the Boy Scouts of America introduced a program called Project SOAR — better known as Save Our American Resources. Funds were scant during that time, and we were tired of selling various items to raise money for summer camp and troop expenses.
Louie Griggs, who was Troop 16 committee chair and me as Scoutmaster, were talking one day and we decided to start a recycling project to help the troop earn money. Louie and I kicked around the idea of recycling glass knowing full well there was a plentiful supply lying along roadways and under bridges. Once we got rolling everyone started bringing their glass to us and a few local bars would save their bottles and we would go pick them up.
As time moved on, we acquired numerous 55-gallon drums to store the crushed glass in, and PPG sold us a forklift to help with the heavy lifting. Numerous businesses donated dump trucks to help us haul the glass to recycling centers. Slowly our work paid off as we started to realize that glass recycling was the way to help us fund summer camp, buy equipment for the troop and we were able to send the boys to the Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico on two different occasions.
Next, we visited the Land Between the Lakes in Kentucky with a side trip to Mammoth Cave. The boys enjoyed a weekend trip to visit an aircraft carrier in Charleston, South Carolina, and our last journey was to the Surrey Nuclear Power Plant in Virginia to earn the Atomic Energy merit badge. None of these trips would have been possible without the success of the Troop 16 glass drive, which netted over one million pounds of glass and about two tons of aluminum cans over 25 years.
I can’t ever begin to thank all the men and boys who made this project a huge success. In the mid-’90s we finally put our project to bed as the advent of plastic bottles cut our recycling supply dramatically. As I reflect on this recycling project some 30 years later, I feel that we did our part to help clean up Mother Earth.
April provided us with another reality check accompanied by wild temperature swings, below average rainfall and even a dose of summer-like temperatures.
Total precipitation for the month of April was 2.42 inches compared to an average of 3.41 inches, so our rainfall continued to be below normal for the first four months of 2026. An inch of rain fell on the April 29, but it was too little too late to salvage the month. Normally the first four months average 12 inches, but our total was only 8.18 inches, which is 3.82 inches below average.
The maximum temperature for April was a hot 91 degrees while the minimum temperature was a cold 29 degrees. The average maximum temperature for the month was 72.2 degrees and the average minimum temperature was 45.5 degrees. No snow was measured during the month.
Temperatures roared into the 80s and 90s from April 11-19, prompting folks to think that maybe we would skip spring and head right into summer, but in a 24-hour period, the temperature plummeted nearly 50 degrees. We realized very quickly that the heat was over as snow covered western Allegany County, Garrett County and the mountaintops in the area. Cumberland saw a brief period of wet snow, but it quickly melted. Temperatures climbed into the 90s on two days, 10 days were in the 80s, six days were in the 70-degree range, five days remained in the 60s and seven days failed to climb out of the 50s. In addition to all the wild weather locally several videos showed a waterspout about a hundred yards off the beach on Assateague Island on April 20.
The 2026 hurricane season is right around the corner and the names of the storms have been released: Arthur, Bertha, Cristobal, Dolly, Edouard, Fay, Gonzalo, Hanna, Isaias, Josephine, Kyle, Leah, Marco, Nana, Omar, Paulette, Rene, Sally, Teddy, Vicky and Wilfred. Hurricane season starts June 1 and ends Nov. 30. We’ll have more information on the official forecast from the National Hurricane Center as information becomes available.
The extended forecast courtesy of the Climate Prediction Center indicates temperatures for May could be below normal and precipitation could be above, below or about average. At this time, the months of May, June and July indicate above normal temperatures and once again precipitation could be above, below, or about average.
Summer is right around the corner and it’s about time to get excited about long-awaited vacation plans wherever you’re headed. In the meantime relax and enjoy!