Local Scouts are prepared for changes

Kemet Pitman is the Scoutmaster for Boy Scout Troop 251 in Yakima.

He originally became involved when his sons joined the troop – his oldest just turned 39; his youngest, 37 – and he’s served in his current role since 1994. During those years, Pitman’s passion for the philosophies of the Boy Scouts of America has remained strong as he’s watched the organization change with the times – its membership becoming increasingly inclusive – and he’s excited to continue imparting those philosophies to current and future Scouts.

“The staples of Scouting are important for kids to follow, but it doesn’t say because you’re different you can’t be in Scouting,” he explained. “Just because you’re different doesn’t matter – that’s not what Scouting is about.”

Maintaining those fundamentals, holding onto his passion and instilling it in others is something Pitman and other officials from the Grand Columbia Council plan as they continue adapting to any and all changes within the expanding membership umbrella. That includes ensuring that local troops are prepared for the inclusion of girls and efforts to retain Latter-day Saints Scouts following an announcement that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will be ending chartered participation with the organization at the end of next year.

Beginning Monday, girls will be able to join Cub Scouts. On Feb. 1, they’ll be welcomed to Scouts BSA – a name change for older Scouts that will take effect next year.

“All girls are welcome in the Grand Columbia Council,” emphasized Barry W. McDonald, the council’s Scout executive.

He said the council is expecting – and welcoming – a potential “explosion of kids” and that all indications are that the Scouts will have a lot of 11- to 14-year-old girls joining.

In Cub Scouts, the girls can be in the same pack, but not in the same den. And though girls will be welcomed to join Scouts BSA, the troops have to be single-gender – which means they’ll have to form a separate troop for female members.

The logistics may take some finessing, but McDonald looks at it as an opportunity for real growth.

McDonald is organizing a membership task force that will include other council officials to be sure troops are prepared for the addition of girls. The task force also will survey LDS wards to see where they stand following the recent announcement. They’ll also meet with LDS families and be sure local packs and troops are prepared to absorb those Scouts planning to remain after LDS-chartered participation ends.

After more than 100 years of involvement with Scouting, the church announced May 8 that it “has increasingly felt the need to create and implement a uniform youth leadership and development program that serves its members globally. In so doing, it will be necessary for the Church to discontinue its role as a chartered partner with BSA.” The conclusion of the partnership will officially go into effect Dec. 31, 2019, the statement said.

The Herald-Republic reached out to church officials for further comment but was referred to the original May 8 statement and an online “FAQ” section related to the release. Nothing in the statement or the additional information on the website cites any specific policy changes within Scouting that may have led to the break.

The church does not say its members can no longer participate in Scouting, only that the church will no longer charter memberships and that focus will be placed on its own new initiative for children and youths.

“Fortunately, our relationship with the church locally is good,” McDonald said. He also reiterated the fact that the announcement of the dissolution of the relationship – in existence since 1913 – doesn’t mean LDS members can’t continue as Scouts, only that the church will no longer sponsor troops or packs.

With hundreds of thousands of LDS boys in 30,506 congregations worldwide, the change is one that could have major ramifications. For the duration of the relationship between both organizations, LDS members automatically became part of the Boy Scouts of the United States, making up nearly 20 percent of all Boy Scouts’ 2.3 million youth members.

The Grand Columbia Council serves eight counties and portions of others over an expansive area of Central Washington, extending from Prosser up to the Canadian border, over to the Columbia Basin and just to this side of the Cascades – all the way through the Okanogan Valley. There are 2,012 traditional Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts registered, and 1,238 – 61.5 percent – are members of the LDS Church.

Ninety-seven of the council’s 150 units – packs and units – are registered to the LDS Church.

That means the area could – theoretically – lose close to two-thirds of its membership if all LDS members were to leave.

Worst-case scenario, McDonald said, would be for all LDS members to leave. If that were to happen, there would be staff cuts and the local council would likely merge with another.

But McDonald said that’s unlikely.

“We may lose packs and troops, but we’re not gonna lose as much membership as it looked like,” McDonald said.

With more than 1,000 locally, McDonald hopes all local LDS Scouts working toward various achievements – including Eagle badges – will continue their efforts and continue to instill the tradition of Scouting within their families.

“I believe a lot of the current Scout leaders who are part of the LDS church will stay if they’ve got boys that want to participate in the program,” McDonald said.

A true team effort between all board members, volunteers and families is what it will take to hold onto membership numbers, but McDonald is certain it can – and will – be done.

“We’re going to have to work hard to do our due diligence in making sure we communicate with all LDS families, and they understand if they want to be in Scouting, we’re going to find a place for them,” McDonald said. “Our goal is to help those boys – if they want to stay in Scouting – to transition to other units.”

Troop 251 could be one of those units.

With the exception of holiday weekends, it meets weekly at Yakima’s Central Lutheran Church, which offers sponsorship and a meeting location for its 10 current Scouts.

The sponsorship is one that’s been in existence for about 30 years, but the troop has been around – under other sponsors – a lot longer than that, Pitman said.

At one time, they were Boy Scout Troop 15, but with a change in sponsorship they became Troop 115. Another change begat Troop 215 before the Lutheran church began sponsoring them and they began meeting with their current troop number.

None of Pitman’s Scouts are LDS members, but he said he’s been associated and shared campsites with those who are.

Pitman said he hasn’t heard of plans from local LDS Scouts to leave the program, but he’s ready to help any LDS Scouts who want to remain change to different troops.

Bob Scheidegger, Troop 251’s assistant Scoutmaster and the council’s vice president for media and communications, echoed Pitman’s sentiments. He also noted that the true tenets of Scouting – especially instilling leadership skills in Scouts – aren’t about to change.

Scheidegger smiled as he and Pitman watched their Scouts set up tents and plan the menu for an upcoming weekend at Camp Fife. The Scoutmasters remained vigilant, but asked questions and offered guidance while the boys worked together.

“That’s part what we do as leaders,” Scheidegger smiled. “Teaching them to lead themselves.”