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Boy
Scouts' Venturing program meeting needs
By Andy Price
Scout Executive
Alcovy District, Northeast Georgia Boy Scout Council
Special to GwinnettForum.com
July 6, 2001 - - Several years ago the Boy Scouts of America created
ScoutReach, an emphasis to bring Scouting to youth who've traditionally
not otherwise joined. All youth can benefit from Boy Scout programs
of character development, citizenship, and personal fitness. This
effort has been doubly important given the increasing diversity
of Gwinnett County's population. Today the emphasis is creating
opportunities for many new residents in our community.
While there are non-native-born boys in our traditional Scouting
units, boys who have immigrated to the United States do not join
units at the same rate as boys who have grown up in the United States.
In order to bring Scouting to all boys, last year we started an
Hispanic Cub Scout Pack and Boy Scout Troop, chartered to the Norcross
Human Service Center, across from Meadowcreek Elementary School.
At the end of December, there were 43 Cub Scouts and 24 Boy Scouts
in those units. The Boy Scouts even attended Camp Rainey Mountain
in their first year! These are boys we wouldn't otherwise have been
able to serve with the Scouting program.
With the success of our collaboration with the Norcross Human Service
Center, we're looking toward the Buford Human Service Center to
provide the same opportunity: a Cub Scout Pack and Boy Scout Troop
for boys who haven't joined more "traditional" scout units.
This year we've also targeted the Asian population in Gwinnett.
We're working with Asian American Services, in Norcross, to charter
a Pack and Troop for Asian boys.
While we're placing a great deal of emphasis on reaching out to
non-traditional Scouts, our traditional Scouting units are still
growing like wildfire. Last year, we achieved a 14 per cent increase
in those traditional programs - a growth unheard of for Scouting
nationally. For the first time, the Northeast Georgia Council had
more than 10,000 youth participating in various Scouting programs.
Were Gwinnett County its own Boy Scout council, it would be the
second largest in the state, second only to the Atlanta Area Council.
Clearly, Gwinnetians want their boys in Scouting.
The newest Scouting program, Venturing, is quite an exciting opportunity.
Created in 1998, Venturing is for young men and ages 14-21. Venturing
crews can focus on just about any hobby-type activity. In Gwinnett
County, there are crews that specialize in backpacking, rock climbing,
and ham radio, just to name a few. A new crew is starting in Grayson
that will specialize in early American living history! After just
two years of existence, there are already close to 200 Venturers
in our area.
Since 1910, Scouting has been based on the Scout Oath and Law.
Although these bases of our organization haven't changed, our program
deliver certainly has. I'm sure that William Bois (who brought Scouting
to the U.S. from England) never expected that girls would eventually
be members, as they are in Venturing and Exploring.
Mr. Bois probably didn't even think of this Scouting program as
a character-building educational program. In 91 years we've learned
a great deal about delivering Scouting to local youth, and we've
learned that now, more than ever, its important to stand up for
those core things in which you believe. These are best demonstrated
in our current commitment to a new emphasis toward non-native born
boys and Scouting's new Venturing program here in Gwinnett County..
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