The Boy Scouts are a group of boys of all ages. Since early 2019, the Boy Scouts had allowed everyone to be involved with the organization, giving everyone the opportunity to learn new skills and become better leaders.

The Boy Scouts meet every Monday at the Trinity Heights Church and the troupe here in Newton started in 2001.

“We take in boys around 5th grade and we teach them a bunch of survival stuff, like how to tie knots, how to build fires, we also teach boys how to lead,” sophomore Nathaniel Haines said. “To be a Boy Scout means upholding the boy scout oath and law.“

Keeping strong physically and mentally while doing their duty to their country and upholding the law is something that Boy Scouts deem important. As well as with them being trustworthy, loyal, and thrifty. Whilst the Scouts have to maintain this, scouts can also have fun while still being able to uphold the oath and law.

Haines said a 100-mile hike was one of his favorite activities of scouts. He said the hike in Felmont, New Mexico was “really fun and really achieving.” 

“You learn how to lead and interact with people. Go ahead and do it and if you don’t like it you can quit. I am in charge of all of the boys and they come to me if they have any issues and I run the meetings and there’s a group called PLC and I am the big head honcho,” Haines said.

The ranks that can be achieved in Boy Scouts are Scout, Tenderfoot, Second Class, First Class, Star, Life and Eagle.  The requirements for each of the ranks increase in challenge, from First Class you have to have a leadership position within the troop. To get to the rank of Eagle they have to lead and plan an entire community service project.

“To raise in ranks there is a series of requirements and they get increasingly more challenging as you work towards the rank Eagle,” sophomore Trek Wedel said. “There’s seven ranks and some requirements are learning knots, or skills, first aid, demonstrating physical fitness and community service. Eagle Scouts have to do a service project.” 

The challenge of Boy Scouts can often overwhelm people that are interested in joining the scouts. In the scouts, people can join and make it as hard as they want and put in as much effort.

“Everyone has their own role, my role right now is that I am an older scout and my job is to help out the younger scouts and help them to get to the rank of Eagle. I joined because my dad was big in scouts and he’s been on the whole journey with me and I get to meet a lot of cool people and do a lot of fun things. Anyone willing to come to a meeting and participate can. It’s as hard as you make it and the idea of challenge by choice, the amount of effort you are willing to put in, and how hard you work is how hard it’s going to be for you and how far you’ll go,” Wedel said.

Joining the scouts gives you important life skills and gives you an opportunity to be a  part of something meaningful and gives you a chance to make new friends.

“Means being a part of a close group of friends and it provides a lot of opportunities to learn important life skills,” Wedel said.