Scouting Makes A Difference

If you read some "alternative" news, you have probably seen the Boy Scouts of America come under fire more than once, usually by the ACLU. They have been accused of being everything from homophobic to Christian Extremists (No kidding!).

The ACLU seems like they just drool when they have a chance to represent a person or organization who is against scouting. When parents wanted their daughters to join scouting, probably to make a PC point, and the BSA said no, the ACLU came rushing in saying "You can't discriminate against Females". Why would you want your daughter in "Boy" scouts anyway? The have an organization for girls, and its called Campfire Girls (Brownies included).

I am a scout leader. I have been to a lot of functions where I have met other leaders, and I haven't yet had one spew off about their hate of anyone - including gays. We are just normal people who see scouting as a way for our kids to learn and build character.

Some of the greatest people in history are Eagle Scouts. Earning your Eagle is such a high accomplishment that it is recognized by the President Of The United States as an outstanding achievement. This is because earning your Eagle Scout is no easy accomplishment. I'm not sure what the statistics are, but it's something like only one in ten Boy Scouts earn the rank of Eagle. I currently have two nephews who are Eagles and one who is about to earn his rank. That is a high accomplishment for all three boys in the same family to earn this rank.

My pack, Pack 227, Millersport, Ohio, is one of the most highly decorated Cub Scout packs in the Chief Tarhe District of the Simon Kenton Council. This isn't because we push them to just earn awards. We teach them to serve others in our community with special projects. Even though the leaders are in charge, we let the boys decide what they want to do and how they want to do it.

On January 4, 2006, deputy Ethan Collins of the Fairfield County Ohio Sheriff's Office was killed in the line of duty. The first meeting we had after Ethan's death, we had most of our parents tell us that their boy wanted to do something for him, but they didn't know what. They wanted to raise money for Ethan's family, but I told them that although the money would be nice, we needed to honor his memory and his sacrifice for our community. After several meetings and brainstorming the Scouts found out that I was planning to attend the Fallen Officers Memorial Ceremony in Washington, D.C. the following year where Ethan would be honored. Well, that sealed the deal: Pack 227 was going to Washington for the Memorial.

What followed this decision was mind boggling. For the next year or so, we took on so many fundraising events that I wasn't sure my sanity would be in check afterwards. We did car washes, doughnut sales, rock-a-thons, pancake breakfasts - you name it we did it. And we probably invented a few fund raisers along the way. What we didn't make in fund raising, we had donated to us from prominent and not-so-prominent people in the community. In that year and a half, the Scouts raised enough money to charter a bus, obtain hotel accommodations, and a few site seeing tours for 50 people for three days.

When the time came for the ceremony and memorial, the scouts were outstanding. They were almost held in esteem by officers from various departments throughout the country - and world. Officers saluted them, media adored them, and they were given preferential treatment almost everywhere they went.

One of my favorite memories was when we went to the candlelight vigil the night before the ceremony, and there were so many officers, family, and citizens there that the scouts couldn't see what was going on. Then, a Lieutenant from the Seattle Police Department saw one of the scouts and picked him up and put him high so he could see. Then other officers saw that and before you knew it the scouts were being hoisted up, high in the air, right where they belonged.

I think what summed everything up most to me was when a correspondent from, I think USA Today, asked one of our scouts why they were here, they told her that "We're here for Ethan, because he was here for us". So Simple, so poignant.

Because of their actions in 2006 and 2007, the scouts of pack 227 were allowed to do something that, to my knowledge, has not been allowed in scouting before: they were allowed by the national council of the Boy Scouts Of America to affix a "End Of Watch" pin for Deputy Ethan Collins to their uniforms permanently - a pin unique to pack 227 only that no other pack or troop can wear.

It is because of accomplishments like this that Scouting makes a difference.