When people think of the Boy Scouts, they might envision camping and conservation, fundraisers and Eagle Scout projects that serve the community. All of these initiatives are important to the troops because they are a hallmark of community outreach efforts.
Boy Scouts of America and, locally, the Greater St. Louis Council, highly value community outreach. “Within the St. Louis metro area and the state, we have pockets in every community with vulnerable populations and limited opportunities for kids to participate in structured programs,” says Chrissy Fitzpatrick, outreach coordinator for the area. “ We want to give them something that will benefit them their entire lives. They’re building confidence and character.”
The scouts’ commitment to community outreach can be seen not only in how members reach out to the community but also in how they reach out to potential scouts. Mark Barnes, a troop leader in University City, was a scout while growing up and became a leader when his sons joined. His coverage area includes multiple school districts and varying levels of socioeconomic status, but his troop’s motto remains the same no matter where children are from in the city: “No child turned away.” Sometimes, that means helping pay for uniforms and fees for scouts whose families can’t afford it or providing transportation to events.
Photography courtesy of Mark Barnes.
That mission of accessibility is backed by the Greater St. Louis Area Council of Boy Scouts of America. The organization’s community outreach program, launched three years ago, provides financial opportunities for youth of all ages, in both rural and urban areas. The program provides uniforms, STEM activities, and outdoor education to scouts.
“Traditionally, we would provide outreach through each individual district, pack, or troop, but having our own department allows us to extend our reach, so we can provide scouting across all our boundaries, from rural to urban [areas] and beyond,” Fitzpatrick says. “That’s the primary benefit. We have leaders we hire, so we know we have someone in those underserved areas.”
For Barnes, the commitment to outreach starts with recruiting efforts. “In my districts, where we have greater diversity, the outreach goal is to let everyone know the benefits of scouting,” he says. Recruiting normally occurs in school classrooms, many of which are closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the same spirit of increasing accessibility, the organization welcomed girls to join scouting beginning in 2018. Several troops across St. Louis have welcomed girls to their ranks. Barnes’ group, for example, has two girls out of 30 scouts. For many in the organization, he says, the update merely made official a pattern that troops were already seeing.
“For us, adding the girls hasn’t been a big culture shock,” Barnes says. “Many leaders have daughters who have already been around the program. This gives girls the choice to join our organization and also Girl Scouts if they want.
Barnes and troop leaders across the district also reach out to scouts who are on the autism spectrum or have special needs. There is support to be found within each troop, as well as resources at the Greater St. Louis Council level. “The measure of any community is how the children are doing,” Fitzpatrick says. “It really turns the needle on the impact we can have for the next generation.”
