By: Jessica Susolik

Boy Scouts has been a staple program across the country for almost a hundred and fifteen years and in Newport Beach, at the Newport Sea Base, since 1937. The Newport Sea Base, operated by the Orange County Council, Boy Scouts of America, located at 1931 W Coast Hwy, has had six iterations and upgrades over the years with the latest a $7.2 million dollar transformation in 2002. “The purpose of Scouting is to encourage the physical, intellectual, social, emotional and spiritual development of young people so that they take a constructive place in society as responsible citizens, and as members of their local, national and international communities.” ocbsa.org

After seeing effects of the COVID-19 shutdowns on our youth, scouting is more important than ever. Scott Jones, Newport Beach resident and Scoutmaster/ Committee Chairperson of Troop 90 says that your child can learn a lot of things that they cannot learn in school such as how to get along on their own, to be more independent, take care of themselves, outdoor camping skills and survivor skills. Scott always tells new parents “With us your child will go out for an adventure, and they are going to have fun. But they will learn, and they don’t necessarily know they are learning, they think they are just having fun. We are creating fun memories, but more importantly, the kids are better off, they know more. Even the not athletic ones, or the not outdoorsy ones, they still know more. My favorite thing is when parents come to us years later and thank us, telling us what a difference scouting made in their son’s life.”

Ages 5-10 can join Cub Scouts, and ages 11-17 can join Boy Scouts. Scouting has been producing upstanding citizens since its inception in 1910 with the intention of creating an age-specific program with challenges appropriate for them. Boy Scouts all around the country are powerful leaders today with some of the most famous including: Michael Jordan, Jim Lovell, Franklin Roosevelt, Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Martin Luther King Jr.

The Eagle Scout is the highest rank one can achieve in Boy Scouts. It takes years of hard work, service, motivation and self-determination to become an Eagle Scout. This prestigious milestone is esteemed both nationally and globally. Many prominent people including Neil Armstrong (first man on the moon) , Zach Galifianakis (actor), Dan Reynolds (lead vocalist - Imagine Dragons), Gerald Ford (38th President), Glen Schofield (co-creator, Call of Duty), Sam Walton (Wal-mart Founder), Steven Spielberg (American film director, producer, and screenwriter), James Valentine(lead guitarist of Maroon 5) and others count the Eagle Scout rank among their highest achievements.

In 2019, girls gained the opportunity to join Scouts BSA and earn Eagle rank. In February 2021, nearly 1,000 girls and young women became the first female Eagle Scouts in the organization's history.verywellfamily.com

Russell Etzenhouser, Orange County Council, BSA Scout Executive & President has spent his lifetime in scouts. After earning Eagle Scout Russell spent 12 summers as a Boy-Scout camp staff and was then asked to work for Boy-Scouts full time. Russell credits Scouts with giving him experiences allowing him to be confident speaking in front of a group, meeting and talking to new people. Scouting taught him to set goals and develop strategies to achieve them. He was a shy, quiet kid before his first summer as a camp staff and after helping kids succeed in Scouting it really helped him in a positive way. The experience of becoming an Eagle Scout helped him understand the benefit of working together as a group and how much you can accomplish by doing that. Russell says that Scouting “challenges young people to be the best person they can be, and it uses their own skills and ability as standard. I like to tell people that there's no sidelines in the game of Scouting, so everyone who wants to can be right in there and participate.”

Any time young people are involved safety is always vital and Scouting is no different. Keeping scouts safe is of the upmost importance to both the national and local organization. Stringent safety procedures have been implemented and improved upon and “there’s been a progressive improvement continually to ensure that we’re using the latest and best practices to keep kids safe. Today, every leader in the Boy Scouts of America program has undergone background checks and has extensive training, which is updated annually to ensure that the safest practices are in place. There is a Live Scan fingerprint background check for every single adult that is registered in scouting, with immediate notifications of any changes in that adult’s criminal profile. There are two registered adult volunteers required at any event, which means two people that have had that criminal background check, that have had the Live Scan and have had a mandatory training that keeps kids safe. Our policies and practices are reviewed and revised continually, and we require that everyone take the youth protection training a minimum of every 24 months. This training continues to improve with the most recent research and gives us strategies to ensure that all kids are kept safe. This training also does a lot to help educate our leaders on things that include depression, teen suicide and other significant issues. We are really looking at ways that we, as caring adults, can make sure we are truly protecting and helping these kids.” Russell Etzenhouser

When thinking about how to explore scouting please visit ocbsa.org for any questions or to find a troop near you.

“Scouting has helped me become a responsible, respectful and friendly person. It has taught me many useful skills through merit badges and the Scoutmasters. My favorite parts of Scouts are backpacking trips and Philmont Scout Ranch. I am a Life Scout and currently working on my Eagle Rank.” Jack Geohegan, Newport Beach resident and Boy Scout