‘Scouting’ for Wholesome Youth Activities

Scouts learn many life skills while have fun doing it.

With school starting for most students this month, it’s time to start thinking about signing up for extracurricular activities as well as educational ones. If scouting is on your radar, it’s possible you’ll be signing your child up for something recreational that imparts life lessons as well.

Peachtree Corners Troop 525 out of Simpsonwood United Methodist Church has been proving that Scouts BSA (formerly Boy Scouts of America) is still relevant these days, even when kids can have busier schedules than their parents. Chartered with eight boys in August 1984, the troop prides itself on being boy-led, meaning that the youngsters are trained and then allowed to put those lessons to the test.

Although now is the best time to sign up and get in with the troop as the school year starts, boys are welcome all the time, said Scoutmaster Scott Donaldson. There may not be as many boys signing up now as there have been in the past, but they aren’t hurting for recruits.
“We’re at around 65 boys right now,” said Dave Burns, Committee Chair and Merit Badge Counselor. He’s the father of Will Burns, Eagle Scout #177, now a rising freshman at the University of Alabama. He also has another son/scout in the troop, Christian Burns.
The troop had more than 100 scouts just a few years ago and as large groups age out, large groups join.

From boys to leaders

Each scout is required to hold leadership positions as he advances in rank. “I was in Cub Scouts, did all Cub Scout stuff, got finished with Cub Scouts and was very much done with it,” said Joshua Farley.

He was encouraged to give Scouts BSA a try. “When I got to the troop, I immediately loved it,” he said.

Where Cub Scouts involves younger boys in a parent-structured environment, older scouts get the opportunity to flex their leadership muscles and make most decisions themselves.

“We go camping once a month, and it’s totally boy-led,” said Farley. “We get to decide what camp we want to go to, what …to eat on a campout — it’s a lot of fun.”

Fellow scout Andrew West, agreed. “When we go and camp out, the adults kind of point and say, ‘Hey, you’re over there. We’re going to be over here. And then they go and drink coffee and make up stories about how cool they were when they were young,” West said.

Fly high as an Eagle

Some of the scouts go on to earn the highest possible rank of Eagle Scout. Requirements include actively serving in positions of responsibility, earning a total of 21 merit badges and leading a service project from planning to completion.

West slid in just before the deadline with his Eagle Scout project. “I built a picnic table for a local neighborhood HOA’s garden. I was originally planning on two, but the price of wood isn’t cheap and they were happy with the one. They like it and they enjoy it,” said West. “Honestly, it was a spur of the moment thing because I was coming down to the wire in terms of my aging out. It was May and I aged out in June.”

Farley didn’t play it as close. “I got my Eagle back in 2018. …I built some shelves for a dog rescue,” he said. “They were some pretty massive shelves. I think they were eight-foot by six-foot by four-foot shelves. Originally, they were designed to fit dog crates. The last time I was there, they were using them to store dogs inside of dog crates, as well as giant bags of dog food that they order in bulk. So they’re still getting used a lot.”

Unlike most boys, Farley was still in eighth grade when he earned his Eagle Scout rank — 13 years and 10 months old.

“I would say that out of the past 340 Eagle Scouts, two or three maybe fall in that category,” said Donaldson. And again, not to say anything at all negative about this, but Andrew chose the more common path, which we jokingly referred to as the ‘Hard Tech Eagle,’ which is basically, ‘I’ve got the merit badges. I turn 18 in 30 days, and I’ve got to get this done.’ So, it’s basically ‘get the project done.’”

Growth through adventure

Even though earning that ultimate rank is a major accomplishment, the troop leaders were quick to point out that scouting is about much more than earning badges and achieving ranks.
“I went to my first camp out in Cub Scouts …in an eight-man tent on two blow-up mattresses. And it was like 30 degrees and we’re like ‘How is it that we’re so cold?’” Farley recounted. Both he and his dad were novices at camping but liked the outdoors and the camaraderie of scouting.

“This summer, I backpacked about 105 miles in 10 days out in New Mexico at the Philmont Scout Ranch with our crews,” Farley said. “I’ve totally come full circle since then. Obviously, that was my first camp out. When I first joined the troop, I was showing up with a sleeping bag that came up only a little past my waist.

“…A lot of the kids, they show up in their first year and they’ve got either these giant tents or they’ve got this super-duper high-tech backpacking tent that their parents got them from REI. They have no idea how to set it up. Then as they’re in it, they figure it out,” he added.

Joshua’s dad, Paul Farley, the Outdoor Chair and Merit Badge Counselor, nodded in agreement. He has another son/scout in the troop, Patrick Farley.

They both grew together in the Scouts experience. Although movies may portray all scout leaders as outdoorsy types, many learn along the way with their children. Paul Farley enjoyed it so much, he signed on to volunteer — and he kept volunteering. Now he’s in charge of logistics. He went along on the 105-mile hike, carrying a backpack to summit a 12,400-foot-high peak.

“I also went to Sea Base Camp in Florida, where they get to paddle a war canoe out five miles to barrier island. There’s no power and you carry everything out with you,” said Paul Farley. “My job in the troop as the Outdoor Chair is to do the behind-the-scenes stuff so that the boys have the opportunities to have these adventures and experiences.”

Learn life skills

When it comes down to it, one of the most amazing things about Scouts is that the teens learn life skills, leadership skills and coping skills without realizing they’ve learned them.

Burns shared a story about a 12-year-old scout whose house caught on fire. “The stove caught fire,” he said. “He called 911, got the dogs out of the house and got the fire extinguisher and gave it to his mom and she put the fire out. We’re actually in the process of submitting him for a reward recognition for keeping a calm head and using his scout skills.”

Boys of 11 and 12 enter the troop as nervous tweens. They learn how to set up tents, cook over campfires, coordinate with other boys to get chores done and tie a bunch of knots — and they come out as confident, caring and cognizant young men.

Basic info

Scout BSA Troop 525 meets on Mondays, 7:30 p.m., at Simpsonwood United Methodist Church, 4500 Jones Bridge Circle, Peachtree Corners 30092. To learn more about the troop, go to troop525.org .