Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, and Venturers go out of their way to help others. Often that takes shape as a pack, troop, or crew service project.
Those service projects — totaling nearly 13.5 million hours last year — help define Scouting within our communities.
But recently I wondered about the less-public kinds of Good Turns that Scouts do when there’s nobody watching and no rank advancement or award to earn.
These random acts of Helpfulness or Courteousness might be small, like returning a $20 bill to a stranger who dropped it at the airport. Or they might be big, like helping an elderly neighbor repaint her fence.
Whatever the act, if you spot a young person helping someone else, it’s a pretty safe bet that person is or once was a Scout. “Just watch which kids yield to hold a door or let the other person go first in line,” says Scouter Zachary H. “I guarantee 90 percent are current Scouts or alumni.”
That’s just the kind of young men and women the organization helps create.
If you’ve got a true story of a Scout or Venturer doing a Good Turn when he or she thought nobody was watching, please share it in the comments below.
To get us started, here are some submitted by our Facebook friends:
Safe from the storm
“There was a light rain on the day of a recent community festival. Our Scouts were reminded to bring rain jackets or emergency ponchos when they lined up for the parade. Halfway through the route the sky opened up and a torrential downpour soaked the marchers as they ran for cover. One of the first-year Scouts in my troop didn’t hesitate to take his poncho off and give it to a girl who didn’t have any rain protection. That was a genuine act of kindness!”
— Katie M.
Running toward danger
“An Eagle Scout went to college and near his campus is a public library that homeless people tend to frequent in the winter months to keep warm. One day while studying at that library the Eagle Scout witnessed a man have a medical emergency. When the man passed out he fell and hit his face on the back of a chair badly injuring his face. While other patrons backed away the Eagle Scout stepped up to help the injured man. Doing exactly as he had been taught in scouting, he sent one patron to call 911, sent another to grab paper towels from the restroom to apply to the bleeding gash across the mans face. The Eagle Scout stayed with the man providing comfort and care until the ambulance crew arrived.”
— Chris D.
No trash left behind
“I see many boys in our pack around town at sporting events and other functions. On numerous occasions, I have witnessed them stop in their tracks and pick up a piece of garbage that they see on the ground and throw it in a garbage can. Leave No Trace.”
— Michael N.
Got your back
“My son just got on his bike yesterday to go over to a first year’s house to help him and his mom pack for camp. All after helping his own brother pack for his first time at camp. I am so proud of him!”
— Alicia J.
An Early Start
“Our den just started the Webelos program. We have noticed little good deeds like holding the door for someone with their arms loaded. Helping little kids with activities when the after school monitor is busy. Its great to see the Scouting Method growing in them.”
— Jeffrey W.
Your Story here
Share your story of a Scout doing a Good Turn when it wasn’t expected by leaving a comment below.
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