Scouts in Action

Welcome to the inaugural edition of Scouts in Action. The Boy Scouts of America is excited about this great opportunity to spread the good news of scouting given to us by The Catholic Review. Each month, you will get news and information regarding the wonderful and sometimes simple deeds performed by scouts throughout the archdiocese. Through The Catholic Review, we will also report on scouting events from around the region and from High Adventure outposts like Philmont, Northern Tier, and Sea Base.

So, what is Scouting? The Mission of Scouting is “to prepare young people to make ethical and moral choices over their lifetimes by instilling in them the values of the Scout Oath and Law.” Others describe it more plainly as “Fun with a Purpose!” In simplest terms, Scouting is built around a set of core values that leaders try to transfer to boys and young men as Cub Scouts, Webelos Scouts, and Boy Scouts with words, actions, and deeds.

Did you know there were other units in Scouting? These include Venturing (a co-ed program for young adults age 14 to 21), Explorer Scouts (developing skills in service communities such as law enforcement and firefighting/emergency medical services), and Varsity Scouts (organized team sport units). Regardless of the scout program, the values are basically the same – duty to self, duty to one’s family, duty to community, and last, but certainly not least – duty to God.

Boy Scouts was started in 1907 when Lord Robert Stephenson Smyth Baden-Powell, lieutenant general and war hero in the British Army, held the first Scouting encampment at Brownsea Island in England. Baden-Powell wrote the principles of Scouting in Scouting for Boys, based on his earlier military books, the outdoor skills works of Ernest Thompson Seton, and other teachings. By 1910, Boy Scouts was established in the United States by W.D. Boyce. The teachings of Seton and Daniel Beard were also used as fundamentals for establishing texts of the Boy Scouts of America.

This is a glimpse of who we are. In future columns we will get right to the business of sharing with you some of the deeds, exploits, adventures, and achievements of Scouts. If you have any questions about scouting, please feel free to contact the National Council at www.scouting.org. You can utilize that site as a link to one of the four local scout councils servicing the archdiocese.