Boy Scouts earn merit badges

  • Published
  • By Katie Bell
  • Ramstein High School
RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany --  The Boy Scouts of America Troop 69 and Barbarossa District hosted a Merit Badge University at the 435th Construction and Training Squadron facility Feb. 26. The event provided an opportunity for 178 Boy Scouts in the Kaiserslautern area to earn more merit badges. The badges were taught by adult volunteers, some of them coming from as far away as Spangdahlem and Heidelberg.

"We have people that have nothing to do with Scouting that just came out to help," said Col. John Parker, Scoutmaster of Troop 69 and coordinator of the whole event. "They gave up their Saturday for this!"

A few examples of the badges taught were fire safety, emergency preparedness, architecture, music, and law. These classes not only bring the boys closer to earning another badge, but also aid them in making decisions for the future.

"I'm currently learning law, and I want to get into law when I get older," said 14-year-old Mitchell Krueger, a scout from Troop 69. "It's a good stepping stone. Plus, Eagle Scout looks really good on a résumé."

The classes taught can also be very beneficial to the community. One example of this would be emergency preparedness.

"It's something a lot of people just don't think about," said Benjamin "Chuck" Suminsby, a scout from Troop 156. "When people see someone screaming 'call an ambulance' no one thinks 'Oh, I should be the one to do that.'" This class teaches scouts to be the person that takes action in the event of a crisis.

Boy Scouts is the premiere character building program for young men. Along with camping and outdoor skills, Boy Scouts teaches citizenship, leadership, and integrity.
"You get instilled with character. That's the entire point of Boy Scouts," said 14-year-old Dakota Galley, another scout from Troop 69.

Boy Scouts teaches young men to serve their community and their nation well. In fact, some of the most important members of society were once boy scouts. Ramstein High School teacher John Mol, the Scoutmaster of Troop 156, has seen several scouts come and go through the program.

"There's a professor in St. Louis, there's a lawyer in Dallas, there's a police officer in Florida -- there's these guys all over the United States -- Colonels in the army, fighter pilots over at Lakenheath, they were all part of our troop at one time, and it's neat to imagine that once upon a time they were a goofy little scout at age 12."

Boy Scouts is a rewarding program, not just for the boys, but for the adults who help teach it as well.

"The best part about Boy Scouts is when something clicks and the boys learn to do something on their own, without my help, that they couldn't do before, because of something I've taught them or some behavior I've modeled," said Colonel Parker of his role as a scoutmaster.

Most Boy Scouts start at a very young age, and slowly work their way to becoming an Eagle Scout. However, it's a long program and most young scouts become discouraged.
"Everybody gets frustrated, so my advice is just stick with it," said Dakota. "There's always going to be fantastic leaders in your troop that are going to help you push through the storming stage and you will be a senior scout before long."

Boy Scouts is a long but rewarding program that teaches boys how to be men. If you're interested in becoming a boy scout, check out www.tac-bsa.org to find a troop near you.