Boy Scouting is a grand adventure
The Boy Scouts of America is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.
I first got involved as a Cub Scout in 1970-something, which means I’ve been a part of Scouting for about a third of its existence. Scouting, on the other hand, has been part of my life for more than three-fourths of my existence.
It has changed my life and given me many adventures of a lifetime. Scouting is a huge part of my family. I was a Cubmaster before we moved to Texas and now I am part of a troop committee. My wife is a Den Leader and our three sons are all Scouts. Wesley is about to earn the rank of Life Scout, which is the one just below Eagle. Luke is a Bear Cub and Colton is a first-year Tiger Cub. Only my daughter, who lives with her mother in Virginia, is missing out on our Scouting adventure.
Scouting is an adventure. We’re not just a bunch of nerds in funny outfits who like to whittle, going camping, weaving baskets and helping little old ladies cross the street. My Scouting background includes rock climbing, whitewater rafting, backpacking, canoeing, fishing, snow caving, skiing and much, much more.
I always pitied the kids who were too cool for Scouts because they never got to do half the fun stuff we did. It seems like we were always on the go. Weekly meetings, monthly campouts, summer camps, high adventure treks and various other activities kept life very exciting. Scouting opened doors and created opportunities for me that most kids will never get to experience.
The biggest adventures for me would have to be the two 50-mile canoe trips we took at the Flaming Gorge Reservoir in Wyoming and Utah. Of course, working on camp staff for four summers at the Ben Delatour Scout Ranch in Red Feather Lakes, Colo., was an adventure in itself.
I got to spend three of those summers as the camp mountain man, dressed in buckskins and teaching wilderness survival. (My first summer was spent on the kitchen staff.) I slept in a teepee, hiked a quarter-mile up the side of a mountain each morning for a shower and played a lot with fire and knives. I also got to shoot black powder rifles, create stuff in the blacksmith shop and go for long hikes in some of the most beautiful land in this country.
Of course, when you take a couple dozen teenage boys and put them together on a staff for two months away from home, all kinds of creative shenanigans are bound to happen. For example, I was the winner of the “bobbing for oranges in flour” contest. I also held my own in the flour fight that broke out afterward.
Winter camping was always a blast. Twice my friend Kevin and I made igloos (one was more like a snow cave). It was nice to stay sheltered at 32 degrees while it dipped below zero at night and everyone else shivered away in those thin, nylon tents.
The biggest honor I received in Scouting came in 1981 when I was awarded my Eagle Scout badge. Not many of us make it that far. My oldest son is getting close. If I’m lucky, all three boys will make it.
Being involved in Scouts with my boys not only lets me relive my childhood, but it helps us bond as a family and stay active outside the home. It seems like we’re always making something, doing something, going someplace and having a lot of fun doing it.
Scouting, however, isn’t all about fun and games. It also teaches us good, solid moral values. You learn citizenship, build family values and build on the principles of faith. You learn leadership and other skills that help you throughout your life. I like knowing that my boys will grow up learning the value of service to others, to country and to their friends and family.
I’m also enjoying being active with my boys. It’s fun making pinewood derby cars, going camping, playing games and doing a lot of other fun stuff together as a family.
Being in Scouts has had its advantages for millions of boys. Former Scouts have gone on to be President of the United States, walk on the moon, and be captains of industry, and so on. You don’t see too many former Scouts rotting away in a jail cell or recovering in drug addiction clinics.
If you have boys between the ages of six and 18, I would strongly encourage you to give Scouting a try. To learn more, go online to www.scouting.org or www.samhoustonbsa.org. It’s not too late to become part of the second century of Scouting.
I first got involved as a Cub Scout in 1970-something, which means I’ve been a part of Scouting for about a third of its existence. Scouting, on the other hand, has been part of my life for more than three-fourths of my existence.
It has changed my life and given me many adventures of a lifetime. Scouting is a huge part of my family. I was a Cubmaster before we moved to Texas and now I am part of a troop committee. My wife is a Den Leader and our three sons are all Scouts. Wesley is about to earn the rank of Life Scout, which is the one just below Eagle. Luke is a Bear Cub and Colton is a first-year Tiger Cub. Only my daughter, who lives with her mother in Virginia, is missing out on our Scouting adventure.
Scouting is an adventure. We’re not just a bunch of nerds in funny outfits who like to whittle, going camping, weaving baskets and helping little old ladies cross the street. My Scouting background includes rock climbing, whitewater rafting, backpacking, canoeing, fishing, snow caving, skiing and much, much more.
I always pitied the kids who were too cool for Scouts because they never got to do half the fun stuff we did. It seems like we were always on the go. Weekly meetings, monthly campouts, summer camps, high adventure treks and various other activities kept life very exciting. Scouting opened doors and created opportunities for me that most kids will never get to experience.
The biggest adventures for me would have to be the two 50-mile canoe trips we took at the Flaming Gorge Reservoir in Wyoming and Utah. Of course, working on camp staff for four summers at the Ben Delatour Scout Ranch in Red Feather Lakes, Colo., was an adventure in itself.
I got to spend three of those summers as the camp mountain man, dressed in buckskins and teaching wilderness survival. (My first summer was spent on the kitchen staff.) I slept in a teepee, hiked a quarter-mile up the side of a mountain each morning for a shower and played a lot with fire and knives. I also got to shoot black powder rifles, create stuff in the blacksmith shop and go for long hikes in some of the most beautiful land in this country.
Of course, when you take a couple dozen teenage boys and put them together on a staff for two months away from home, all kinds of creative shenanigans are bound to happen. For example, I was the winner of the “bobbing for oranges in flour” contest. I also held my own in the flour fight that broke out afterward.
Winter camping was always a blast. Twice my friend Kevin and I made igloos (one was more like a snow cave). It was nice to stay sheltered at 32 degrees while it dipped below zero at night and everyone else shivered away in those thin, nylon tents.
The biggest honor I received in Scouting came in 1981 when I was awarded my Eagle Scout badge. Not many of us make it that far. My oldest son is getting close. If I’m lucky, all three boys will make it.
Being involved in Scouts with my boys not only lets me relive my childhood, but it helps us bond as a family and stay active outside the home. It seems like we’re always making something, doing something, going someplace and having a lot of fun doing it.
Scouting, however, isn’t all about fun and games. It also teaches us good, solid moral values. You learn citizenship, build family values and build on the principles of faith. You learn leadership and other skills that help you throughout your life. I like knowing that my boys will grow up learning the value of service to others, to country and to their friends and family.
I’m also enjoying being active with my boys. It’s fun making pinewood derby cars, going camping, playing games and doing a lot of other fun stuff together as a family.
Being in Scouts has had its advantages for millions of boys. Former Scouts have gone on to be President of the United States, walk on the moon, and be captains of industry, and so on. You don’t see too many former Scouts rotting away in a jail cell or recovering in drug addiction clinics.
If you have boys between the ages of six and 18, I would strongly encourage you to give Scouting a try. To learn more, go online to www.scouting.org or www.samhoustonbsa.org. It’s not too late to become part of the second century of Scouting.
posted by Joe Southern | 9:00 AM
1 Comments:
My Mom won't let me do girl scouts. she says that they have goten to librel. But she thinks that the boy scouts are great!
"Hi-Yo-Silver!Away!"
Sarah Brown
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