The upcoming break from Scouting has made for some interesting conversations. A few weeks ago at church, someone overheard that Richard would be out of a job at the end of the year. She immediately thought of his employment, not his Scoutmaster work, and her husband pulled us aside to commiserate.
We have observed that Scouting in our church is winding down, and there is less enthusiasm and participation. Richard has tried to figure out which boys want to pursue the Eagle rank and guide them to the right classes and activities so they can do it. In our unit, most boys and parents are not interested in rank advancement. This makes it hard to know if it’s “worth it” to go camping each month, but Richard and the other leaders continue to take them into the wild. It’s a good thing for the boys, the Deacons quorum, and the neighborhood. Scouting bridges a potential gap in our neighborhood between those who go to church and those who don’t. In fact, I don’t think the boys perceive a gap, as they are just friends having fun together. That is a very good thing.
