Originally Posted by John
(Post 443245)
Attaining the rank of Eagle is one of my most proud accomplishments. Becoming an Eagle Scout isn't just about reaching the "top" - it's about all the experiences along the way. I wouldn't trade those experiences or memories for anything.
I was very active in scouting from when I was 11 until around the time I started college. I was also quite active in school activities as well - clubs, sports, prez of the honor society, etc. In my opinion, being active in scouting and being active in extracurricular activities didn't really compare. In the long run, scouting has benefited me far more than anything else I was involved in at the time. I believe that the man I have become is in large part due to the experiences and values that I learned as a scout. Scouting has truely had a big impact on my life.
Expense-wise it isn't too bad. But I suppose that depends on a few things. Class A uniform along with several scouting related t-shirts for when only a class B uniform is needed. You'll need to buy those a few times as your son grows out of the clothes. Camping equipment - the sleeping bag & backpack will probably be most costly of all the equipment. Good hiking boots if the troop does any long hiking trips. Cost for summer camp & weekend camping trips. Depending on the size of the troop there will probably be older kids who already grew out of some uniforms, so you can get them for free. Some troops can cover the cost of dues (I believe it was $1 a week), the weekend camping trips and a good portion of summer camp expenses for the scouts with fundraisers.
Significance / recognition: I don't know much about how things are in girl scouting or the differences between girl scouting & boy scouting, but back when I was a scout a number of people had told me that being an Eagle Scout was given significant consideration by college admissions staff. My personal example of this, not related to college admissions: I accomplished quite a bit in high school - high grades, honors classes, president of the honor society, varsity scholar, a distinguished scholars award.... none of that seemed to garner much recognition from the community "higher ups" such as the mayor, etc. On the night of my Eagle Scout court of honor I received letters & certificates of recognition from all kinds of people including the mayor, state senators, local organizations (such as the VFW), local business executives and even from Bill & Hillary Clinton. I have a filing cabinet drawer full of this stuff.
Now for something more directly related to college admissions - at one point I was seriously considering an application to the Air Force Academy. I did a lot of research into it and ultimately decided that was not what I wanted to do. But while I was still considering the possibility, through scouting contacts it took only a few days to secure my congressional nomination to the Air Force Academy "just in case" I decided to apply.
Aside from all that & more about scouting in general - not all troops are the same. I feel as though I was fortunate to be in a very active & successful troop. The troop put out a good number of Eagle Scouts, we won top awards at scouting events - but more important than all of that, we had the best times. I've seen troops which were run like military units, or like schools outside of school - our troop was not like that. Along with summer camp for a week in the summers we also spent another week camping in west virginia, we went skiing in the winter, the troop spent a weekend camping on an aircraft carrier, one halloween weekend we spent in Salem, MA (what better place to spend halloween?), we met and served as honor guard at an event for Henry Kissenger. Myself and a friend from my troop went to the 1989 national scout jamboree, with our council's jamboree troop, where during one of the events Steven Spielberg told a huge audience about the "movie" he made while working on a scout merit badge - how scouting influenced his life and how when he became an Eagle Scout was one of the proudest moments in his life. We camped on an airforce base (for around $1 a day, not per person but for the entire troop!) for about a week while hiking around Washington, DC, and we can't forget about the co-ed camping trips with the girl scouts - they were always fun times... and the list goes on...
I have never once heard from anyone I know or knew that they regretted the time they spent in scouting. I have heard many times from friends who weren't in scouting that they wished they had joined.
Becoming an Eagle Scout may not be the determining factor that gets your son into college, or earns him financial-aid/scholarships. But it can be a significant help. And not only could your son list being an Eagle Scout on his college applications, future job applications, scholarship applications - there are also scholarships specifically for Eagle Scouts.
But regardless of all that and whatever other life benefits the rank of Eagle may bring -- the scouting experience in an of itself is enough to say that getting involved in scouting is a great thing to do.
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