Why Reaching Out to New Cultures is so Important

Our commitment to expanding Scouting’s reach to new neighborhoods came to mind as I read a recent Bryan on Scouting blog about a group of refugee families that fled brutal treatment by government leaders in their home country of Myanmar in Southeast Asia to find new homes in the U.S. They settled in Salt Lake City and many of the refugee boys joined Troop 1262, part of the Great Salt Lake Council.

Reaching out to underserved neighborhoods is important to Scouting. We hope to inspire young people in these communities to have life-changing experiences that will help them be strong leaders and good citizens. We also learn a great deal about different cultures and how the values within those cultures benefit Scouts from other communities. We learn from each other.

A Scout from Troop 1262 enjoys canoeing at Scout camp. // Photo courtesy of Bob Roylance and LDS Church News Archive

The importance of our outreach commitment became evident as I learned how 11 of the refugee boys earned their Eagle Award recently. It’s a powerful tribute to Scouting’s values.

These young men and their families displayed tremendous courage to flee their home country. Now, thanks to the guidance of Scoutmaster Bob Roylance and other Scouting volunteers, these young men have bright futures. Many are straight-A students and are looking forward to professional careers. I can’t help but wonder whether they would have had the same opportunities in their home country if they hadn’t settled in our country and experienced Scouting.

A group of Boy Scouts from Troop 1262 in South Salt Lake, Utah, participate in a neighborhood service project // Photo courtesy of Bob Roylance and LDS Church News Archive

At the same time, other Scouts in their troop witnessed a great example of our American heritage – why freedom is so important and how these new citizens have the core values of our mission to help guide them into adulthood and beyond.

I encourage you all to look for similar opportunities in your hard-to-reach communities. It may be a tough sell at first, since Scouting is unfamiliar to many cultures, but you can’t argue with the kind of results we are seeing with the Myanmar refugee Scouts featured in Bryan Wendell’s blog. It’s worth the time and investment to be Scouting ambassadors wherever we can. Go for it and share your success stories with others here.

Good luck!

Wayne