Local Boy Scout Troop 2 is hoping to show the city of Picayune what scouting can offer with a Scout Expo on Nov. 2 at Crosby Commons from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Boy Scout Troop 2 will be celebrating 100 years of continuously being chartered in Picayune at the Scout Expo, said scout master Dewan Watts. The troop was chartered in 1919 and is the oldest continuously chartered troop in Mississippi, Watts said. Since the 1940s the troop has been charted by the Methodist Church, Watts said, and the longevity of the troop is due to the dedication of adult leaders and organizations to keeping the troop chartered.

The expo will feature demonstrations of scouting skills like knot tying and outdoor cooking. There will also be booths on the history of scouting and activities like a monkey bridge. The expo will include a flag retirement ceremony.

“It’s important to the scouts that we treat the flag with the respect that it deserves, and it is an honor for us to be able to take these older flags and retire them properly with the respect that we consider is due,” Watts said.

The scouts have traditionally retired old flags, Watts said, and Troop 2 holds flag retirement ceremonies annually during the Street Festival held by Picayune Main Street.

Troop 2 includes 25 boys ranging from age 10 to 18, and Pack 2 includes 80 boys ages 10 and younger. Crew 2, a co-ed scouting group for ages 16-21, will also be at the expo.

The local scouts also have a pack for girls, Watts said, and hopes to begin a troop for girls soon too. Scouts BSA opened the program to girls to give them the opportunity to earn the Eagle Scout award just like boys, Watts said. Troops are still single gender, Watts said.

The expo is free and open to the public.