Three Boy Scout Troops from DeKalb and Sycamore traveled to Washington, Ill., after Christmas to do tornado relief work.

Scouts from Troop 13, sponsored by the DeKalb Moose Lodge 586; Troop 18, sponsored by the Sycamore Sportsman's Club; and Troop 33, sponsored by First Lutheran Church in DeKalb participated in the trip.

The EF-4 tornado that struck Washington in November damaged or destroyed more than 1.000 homes. Scouts cleared debris on church grounds and along roadways, worked at a donation center sorting clothes, and removed debris at demolished home sites in the city.

For the Scouts it was an amazing discovery of what destructive force a tornado can do and how much work it is to clean it up. The Scouts will return to Washington in the spring to do more work.

.