After $10K+ Theft, West Babylon Scouts Get New Trailer

DEER PARK, NY — After West Babylon Boy Scout Troop 2014 lost its equipment trailer and nearly everything stored inside it to theft earlier this summer, troop leader Barry Spainer said the Scouts suddenly found themselves on the opposite side of community service.

Scouts, troop leaders, local officials and community members gathered outside Mangano Family Funeral Home in Deer Park Friday for the unveiling of a brand-new trailer donated by Mangano Family Funeral Homes and Family Florist.

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“I think the best thing that came out of this for the boys is that we've always been the outreach for everybody else,” Spainer said. “This is the first time someone has done outreach for us.”

The replacement came after Sal Mangano, president of Mangano Family Funeral Homes, learned about the theft and decided to purchase a new trailer for the troop.

Babylon Councilman Anthony Manetta said the theft sparked a social media campaign, media attention and widespread community support.

“The trailer was gone. The supplies were gone,” Manetta said, before praising Mangano for going beyond a contribution and purchasing a new 2026 trailer for the Scouts.

Spainer said troop members discovered the original trailer was missing at the end of June when they went to put items inside for summer storage.

Another trailer was parked where theirs had been, leaving the Scouts initially unsure what had happened. They contacted police and determined that the other trailer was legally parked there, but their own trailer had disappeared.

“The trailer contained everything the troop owns because we have no other storage,” Spainer said. “All our camping supplies, all our outreach equipment, everything they own was there. Nothing's been found. No gear. No trailer. Nothing's been found at all.”

The police report remains active, Spainer said, though troop members do not expect the property to be recovered. He said they believe someone may have wanted the basic black trailer itself and discarded what was inside, though that has not been confirmed by police.

Spainer estimated the trailer and equipment were worth between $10,000 and $12,000 altogether.

The troop had enough camping equipment for four patrols, including four kitchen setups, cooking equipment, tents for more than 20 Scouts and tables. The trailer also held supplies accumulated through years of car washes, food drives and other troop activities.

The Scouts now have to replace tents, tarps, cooking utensils and other equipment while outfitting the new trailer with shelving.

“Now we have a starting point because before this we had nothing,” Spainer said.

One of the troop's founders and a current assistant scoutmaster said the trailer contained memorabilia accumulated throughout the troop's history.

Mangano's involvement began as the troop was fundraising and reaching out for help.

“He called us and not only offered to help, but he also offered to replace the trailer, and then he had one made for us,” Spainer said.

Dominic Carella, general manager of Mangano Family Funeral Home, said he learned about the theft during one of his regular morning meetings with Mangano.

Carella said Mangano soon proposed doing more than contributing to the troop's fundraising effort.

“Let's go out and buy a trailer,” Carella recalled Mangano saying.

Mangano's donation was only one part of the response. Spainer said another Scout troop, the Scouts' council, an auto body shop, an air-conditioning business and people with no previous connection to Troop 2014 offered help. Residents also contributed more heavily than usual during the troop's regular fundraisers.

“Through all the bad, some good does come out of it,” Spainer said.

Troop 2014 currently has 14 Scouts and typically averages around 20, Spainer said. Members come from West Babylon, North Babylon, Babylon, Lindenhurst and Massapequa.

For Scouts Chris Hurst and Jack O'Dougherty, both of whom have spent roughly four years in Boy Scouts after earlier experience in Cub Scouts, the theft was initially hard to understand.

“I was really surprised,” O'Dougherty said. “I didn't think someone would really do that.”

Hurst said some of the most personal losses were achievement-related items collected since the troop was formed in 2014.

The replacement is not yet stocked, and years of troop memorabilia remain gone for good. But the Scouts again have somewhere to store what they rebuild.

On Friday, standing in front of the replacement trailer bearing Troop 2014's name, the Scouts were focused on what came next.

“What's done is done,” Hurst said. “It's in the past. We got a new trailer, we have new stuff — we bounced back.”