BY MATT PIKE
St. Joseph Post
The Boy Scouts of America are always looking for new members, and opportunities to become a cub scout are happening around St. Joseph
Erik McGuire District Director for the Pony Express Council says that with back to school happening, it's a very exciting time for the Boy Scout organization.
"The scouting organization serves youth starting in kindergarten and all the way through high school, with the goal of providing fun programs that are character enhancing, developing leadership, giving community service, promoting good citizenship, patriotism, and all the things that are important to teach young people today." says McGuire
Local Cub Scout packs around St. Joseph will begin hosting signup nights, looking for new members.
McGuire says the Boy Scouts or America have one sole mission.
"Our mission that drives everything we do is to instill the values of the scout oath and law into young people," McGuire tells St. Joseph Post. "And really what that's all about is giving them a fun program, that kind of hooks them a little bit, they do some really cool things that they couldn't do otherwise."
One of those fun activities is summer camp, and for one of the best Boy Scout camps in America, you don't even have to leave St. Joseph.
McGuire says the Boy Scouts are very proud of St. Josephs own Camp Geiger, a camp that draws in thousands of scouts from across the world.
McGuire adds a big draw for Camp Geiger, is the amount of programs they offer.
"A scout could have an opportunity to go to camp for about seven years as a youth, but each session they can only take about six different programs," McGuire tells St. Joseph Post. "So when we offer 50 different programs, it makes the camp a draw for older scouts that couldn't possibly earn everything in one or two years."
Opportunities to enroll in scouts are happening around the area including in St. Joseph. Pack 10 will meet at 6pm at the St. John Charismatic Church on the South Side, Pack 6 will meet at 6:30 pm at Huffman United Methodist Church, and Pack 215 meeting at 7pm at Wesley United Methodist Church.