Key Takeaways

• The annual Harry E. Mangle Memorial Dinner returns Thursday, October 22, 2026, at the Frank J. Pasquerilla Conference Center in Johnstown, Pennsylvania.
• It’s a flagship fundraiser for the Laurel Highlands Council, supporting Scouts across the Penn’s Woods District serving the counties of Bedford, Cambria, Indiana, and Somerset.
• Funds raised help pay for camping, equipment, merit badges, and scholarships that make Scouting accessible to more families.
• The dinner supports programs that build leadership, ethics, community engagement, and practical life skills in nearly 1200 Scouts across the Penn’s Woods District serving the counties of Bedford, Cambria, Indiana, and Somerset.
• Attending brings together business leaders, Scouting alumni, and families, strengthening community ties while supporting a shared cause.
• Fundraising itself teaches Scouts valuable life lessons: money management, goal-setting, confidence, and teamwork.
• Every ticket, sponsorship, or donation directly expands the council’s ability to reach more Scouts and communities.

What Is the Harry E. Mangle Memorial Dinner?

Every October, business leaders, Scouting families, and community members from across Western Pennsylvania gather in Johnstown for one of the region’s longest-running fundraising events: the Harry E. Mangle Memorial Dinner. If you’ve never attended, here’s what the dinner is all about — and why it’s among the best fall fundraisers you can support.

The Mangle Dinner is one of the Laurel Highlands Council’s flagship special events, held each year to raise funds that keep Scouting programs running throughout the counties of Bedford, Cambria, Indiana, and Somerset. 

Past dinners have featured keynote speakers with regional ties and have honored local leaders with the council’s Distinguished Citizen Award, recognizing individuals whose leadership and community service reflect the same values Scouting tries to instill in young people. It’s part fundraising gala, part tribute, and part rallying point for everyone who believes in what Scouting does for kids.

Why Fundraisers Like This One Matter

Like any nonprofit, the Laurel Highlands Council relies on fundraising to sustain its programs, which play an outsized role in healthy youth development.

The Money Keeps Scouting Running

 Dinners like this one raise Scout funds to support things like:

• Camping and program activities
• Equipment and supplies 
• Rank advancement materials and merit badges
• Scholarships that make Scouting possible for families who couldn’t otherwise afford it

Without events like the Mangle Dinner, the council’s ability to reach underserved communities and expand its programs would shrink significantly.

Every Ticket Is an Investment in Character

Scouting’s mission goes far beyond camping trips. Its programs are built to develop:

• Leadership. Scouts learn to take responsibility, make decisions, and guide their peers.
• Ethics. The Scout Oath and Law give young people a moral compass that shapes decision-making for life.
• Community engagement. From neighborhood clean-ups to civic education, Scouts are taught that service isn’t optional; it’s expected.
• Practical, lifelong skills. With more than 135 merit badges available, Scouts explore everything from robotics to wilderness survival, often discovering career interests along the way.

When you purchase fundraiser dinner tickets for this event, you’re funding all of this — not just for one Scout, but for the over 12,100 youth members and 3,000 volunteer leaders the Laurel Highlands Council serves.

It Builds Community, Not Just Revenue

Fundraisers like this one bring together people who might not otherwise cross paths — business owners, civic leaders, Scouting alumni, and families — all united by a shared belief in developing the next generation. For local businesses, sponsoring or attending is also a visible, meaningful way to demonstrate corporate social responsibility while supporting a cause with deep roots in the community.

Fundraising Teaches Scouts, Too

It’s worth remembering that fundraising isn’t just something done for Scouts: it’s something many Scouts do themselves through unit-level campaigns. Selling popcorn, running a car wash, or organizing a benefit teaches kids to:

• Manage money and understand the relationship between costs and profits
• Set and work toward goals
• Interact confidently with people outside their immediate circle
• Collaborate as a team toward something bigger than themselves

Attending council-level events like the Mangle Dinner reinforces that same lesson on a larger scale: that a community coming together, dollar by dollar and seat by seat, can accomplish something no individual could alone.

The Impact Your Attendance Will Make

The Laurel Highlands Council is one of the largest councils in Scouting America, spanning Western Pennsylvania, Western Maryland, and parts of West Virginia. It aims to make Scouting accessible to every eligible child in that footprint, but that reach depends entirely on community support. Every dinner ticket, sponsorship, and donation helps ensure a Scout somewhere gets to attend summer camp, earn a badge, or take part in a service project they might otherwise have missed.

Whether you’re a Scouting alum, a local business leader, or simply someone who believes in investing in young people, this is a night to celebrate the past, support the present, and help build the region’s future leaders — one seat, sponsorship, and Scout at a time.

Attend the Harry E. Mangle Memorial Dinner

If you live in the western parts of Pennsylvania, Maryland, or West Virginia, enrolling your child in the Scouting America Laurel Highlands Council is an excellent way for them to benefit from countless programs and experiences that will mold them into capable, kind, and community-oriented people.

Join us as we celebrate the Harry E. Mangle Memorial Dinner on October 22, 2026, at the Pasquerilla Conference Center in Johnstown. Register here to attend or donate and help us continue our mission to serve youth from all communities, regardless of circumstances.  

Scouting’s programs and outdoor adventures give young people the opportunity to try new things, provide service to others, build self-confidence, and develop leadership skills. The Scouting America Laurel Highlands Council serves youth members and volunteer adult leaders throughout Western Pennsylvania, Western Maryland, and parts of West Virginia. We aim to beneficially involve every eligible child and their family in the fun and adventure of our programs. 

Can’t attend the memorial dinner? Please consider supporting us in the way that works best for you.