Waht has Value?

[Fuzzy Bear]

Our Troop arrived at the Annual Scout Show with as little planning as possible. Things were thrown together at the last minute and by the end of the day I was disgusted. We still got a ribbon for third place, as well as most other units that did a bad job. My Scout Master's Minute later had to do with Fool's Gold. Most people don't know the difference between something of value and something that is worthless. They are content to search for things that glitter. Knowledge of real gold is tricky and usually takes work. It generally isn't just lying on the ground to be picked up.

 

A year later, we retuned to the Scout Show. Planning, preparation and skill were all in evidence in an active display that attracted many and gave excitement to all. The Scouts received the Presidential Award for their effort. They came running over with their ribbon to tell me that they had received real gold that year. I received one of the most momentous emotional boosts of my life by their new found insight. I knew then that what we were doing was paying dividends.

 

When I read that other programs are better than Scouting, I can agree in part because they may well offer things of great value. I have been in Scouting since I was a youth (given time off for college and grad school). What I have found in Scouting has helped me as a person and I have seen innumerable benefits that others have experienced as well. The program is fairly inexpensive when compared to others and yet it teaches a multitude of skills, some that are profound in nature. I like to think that nothing else compares in value.

 

FB

[Prairie_Scouter]

Certainly, I don't know of any program like Scouting that is as organized and thorough as Scouting can be. My daughter is in Girl Scouts, and while they do a good job, they don't have the "outdoor presence" that BSA does, at least in our area (outside of Chicago). My own limited experience with Girl Scouts leads me to think that they are not managed very well at the higher local levels. My brother has his kids in Indian Guides (I think that's what it's called, anyway), and that seems to be mostly a way for the parents to get their kids out into a kind of watered down version of camping once in awhile. But, it's better than not getting out at all, and it's a good way to get some dad/kid time.

 

As far as where the value is, that depends on why someone comes to Scouting, I think. There are people who see Scouting almost as some sort of religion unto itself; personally, I find those people kind of scary . There are people who bring their kids here to instill good values in them at some level. We have several single moms in our troop, and part of the reason they have their sons in Scouting is to provide them some "father figures". Some people come for the camping opportunities. Some people come for the overall activity program, because there are things in Scouting that you have the opportunity to do that the average kid can't get anywhere else. We went to Seabase last year. Where else is your kid going to be able to spend a week on a 100 foot sailboat in the Florida Keys? Heck, where am *I* normally going to get a chance to do something like that? So, I think that there are a variety of reasons that people get into Scouting, and all of those reasons provide a different level of value to those that participate.

 

While I don't necessarily agree with everything in Scouting, Fuzzy, I'd have to agree that the value of the overall program far outweighs the costs in time or money.