Future Leaders

Last week I had the privilege of spending the entirety of it with 180 scouts in summer camp at Camp Sequassen in New Hartford, CT. I am adult leader, and along with my wife, helped ensure the safety of her Troop along with 21 other provisional scouts spending the week with us in our campsite. These girls, along with the other scouts in camp, boys and girls, spent the week mostly having fun, completing merit badges as they work their way towards their Eagle rank, but along side all of that, they were encouraged, and in many ways expected to work on their leadership skills. The way the whole week is set up, the scouts are generally in charge of themselves, albeit with us as adults to guide, remind, and ensure overall safety during it all. From morning till evening, the scouts are encouraged to work amongst themselves to problem solve, choose a leader for the week in their campsite, accomplish given tasks, and lead themselves through various challenges. While they may not see it now, there is a growth they exhibit throughout the week as both individuals and as a group that exemplifies how scouting is working in creating future leaders for our country and for our world.

It is exceptionally rewarding as an adult to help guide these youth on their journey, to see them grow and come to realize both their strengths and weaknesses. I myself started off in scouting as a young kid in grammar school as a cub scout, but once I moved up to BSA Scouting, the level of scouting that includes the coveted Eagle rank, I quickly fizzled out due to lack of cohesion within the Troop I joined, and never finished. Looking back now, I wish I had and see the benefits and rewards I could have reaped from continuing. However, I do not regret my choices as I wouldn’t be where I am today if I had continued. But now that I am involved in scouting as an adult leader, I get to help ensure that the scouts I interact with get the best experience possible. I have the ability now to help create a positive environment for them in which they can grow their skills and flourish as individuals. I am humbled to see how strong these youth I interact with are and the majority of the time, there is not much to do but put out small, interpersonal fires that erupt amongst the individual teenagers, and show them how much fun they can have. Further, as I participate in the different activities provided throughout the day, I get to help coach them through different challenges and provide them the opportunity to succeed, which most of them do.

I truly feel that more youth should be involved in scouting, not to the exclusion of sports or everything else, but in addition to them. School provides them with the knowledge they will need in life, sports provides them with physical activity and the knowledge of how to work as a team, and scouting rounds them out as good citizens, leaders, and builds their moral base. The scouts I saw at camp this past week are some of the most well rounded teenagers I have ever interacted with. They are competitive, yet know how to work together, they exhibit leadership skills taught through scouting, and regardless of where they come from, the inner city or the affluent suburbs, for one week, none of that matters, they forge friendships amongst each other, and create interpersonal bonds that will last a lifetime. They learn over the course of a week how to deal with others who are different than themselves, yet share common values and beliefs, ones instilled through scouting that are similar the world over. It is through these common beliefs that barriers are broken down and valuable life skills are learned. If you have a young child, boy or girl, who is not involved in scouting currently, find a local unit and check it out, it will be well worth the time spent down the road.