How These Top Government Officials Plan to Honor Scouting

Last week, BSA celebrated 100 years since President Woodrow Wilson federally incorporated the youth organization into the United States of America on June 15, 1916.

Time magazine recounted the history of the BSA’s federal recognition in an article Wednesday, highlighting the special day in Scouting. The piece quoted President Wilson, explaining the purpose behind the congressional charter. In regard to BSA’s official incorporation, President Wilson stated, “every nation depends for its future upon the proper training and development of its youth.”

Eagle Scouts in both the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives want to commemorate the historic date on a national level. In a recent blog post, Bryan on Scouting shares how Distinguished Eagle Scout Sen. Mike Enzi of Wyoming and Distinguished Eagle Scout Rep. Chris Collins of New York introduced resolutions to commemorate the Scouting milestone.

Collins, who also leads the Congressional Scouting Caucus, credits Scouting for many of his own skills.

“The values I learned as a Scout have formed the foundation of my beliefs and positioned me to succeed throughout my professional career.”

In the video below, Enzi advocates for Scouting on the Senate floor. He explains how the 1916 congressional charter helped BSA grow into one of America’s largest youth organizations, and how impactful the Scouting program has been for American youths in return.

It comes at no surprise that members of both the House and Senate have an appreciation for Scouting—a notable number of them have earned Scouting’s highest rank! According to Bryan on Scouting, 4.9 percent of males in the current U.S. House of Representatives, and 12.5 percent of males in the 114^th U.S. Congress are Eagle Scouts.

To learn more about these government officials’ roots in Scouting, read Bryan on Scouting’s original story about Eagle Scouts in the House and Senate.

Also, make sure to check out Bryan’s post, 100th anniversary of BSA charter gets congressional recognition as well as the article from Time magazine for the full story on BSA’s commendations from top officials in Washington.

Are any of your local government officials involved in Scouting? Tell us in the comments below!