Since its introduction in 1911, the Eagle Scout rank has been earned by more than two million young men. The title of Eagle Scout is held for life, thus giving rise to the phrase "Once an Eagle, always an Eagle." Requirements include earning at least 21 merit badges and demonstrating Scout Spirit, service, and leadership.
This includes an extensive service project that the Scout plans, organizes, leads, and manages. Eagle Scouts are presented with a medal and a badge that visibly recognizes the accomplishments of the Scout.
Fundamentals of an Eagle Scout
No two Eagle Scouts are exactly alike, yet all are fundamentally alike. By noting some of these fundamentals, an insight might be glimpsed of what an Eagle Scout is.
- He has learned that reverence to God comes before all other things.
- He knows that respect for the rights and convictions of others are part of his duty to God and his fellow man.
- He demonstrates the true meaning of loyalty, although he may not be able to define it.
- He has learned discipline and teamwork and how to apply them in his daily living.
- He has developed his own code of honor based on the ideals of Scouting.
- He has learned that physical bravery may require less courage than standing up for one's convictions.
- He has perseverance and determination: he must have if he is to attain Eagle rank.
- He has the knowledge that nature gives to those who seek it.
- He has Scouting skills that will be invaluable to him all his life.
- He presents a cheerful outlook on life even in the face of hardships and disappointments.
- He has more than a vague idea of what duty to his country is: he knows it starts with duty to God, his family and himself.
- He eagerly seeks the underlying peace offered by God through his wilderness and wildlife.
- He's a qualified junior leader.
The Scout Motto: "Be Prepared"
The Scout Motto of the Scout movement is, in English, "Be Prepared", with most international branches of the group using a close translation of that phrase. These mottoes have been used by millions of Scouts around the world since 1907. Baden-Powell provides several descriptions of how and for what situations a Scout must be prepared elsewhere in Scouting for Boys.
And he is to do his duty before anything else, even though he gives up his own pleasure, or comfort, or safety to do it. When in difficulty to know which of two things to do, he must ask himself, "Which is my duty?" that is, "Which is best for other people?"-and do that one. He must Be Prepared at any time to save life, or to help injured persons.
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In Chapter VII, Baden-Powell discussed how Scouts prepare themselves to protect women and how they can improve themselves. He says a scout should walk with a woman on his left "so that his right is free to protect her", walking on the other side in the streets to protect her from traffic. Chapter VIII of Scouting for Boys discussed saving life.
International Translations of "Be Prepared"
The motto of the Girl Guides is "Be Prepared". Hilary Saint George Saunders' book The Left Handshake: The Boy Scout Movement during the War, 1939-1945 had the first name of each chapter spell out the Scout motto.
Here are some international translations of the Scout Motto:
- Steeds bereid! in Belgium
- Wees bereid! in the Netherlands
- Weest paraat!
- Var redo!
- Prêt(e) à servir ("Ready to serve") in Burkina Faso
- Sois prêt(e)!
- Seid bereit!
- Будь готов!
- Sentiasa (ber)sedia!
- Wees bereid!
- Sea prepará!
- Semper parata!
- Fii pregatit(a)!
- ¡Bien preparadas! ("Well prepared!") in Mexico
- ¡Siempre activas! ("Always active!") in Nicaragua
- ¡Estar preparadas!
- Будь готов! СКОБ! (an acronym for Сильно! Красно! Обережно! "With strength! With beauty! With care!
A scout's motto is "Never say die till you're dead"-and if he acts up to this it will pull him out of many a bad place when everything seems to be going wrong for him.
A Boy Scouts very first camp out
Scouting in Action: Responding to COVID-19 in Africa
As the Africa Regional Director of the World Scout Bureau, I feel privileged to witness at a relatively close range the initiatives of many local Scout groups in response to the current COVID-19 pandemic. The initiatives range from awareness raising, getting the message across-especially in areas where the pandemic is seen as a hoax, a myth, or a conspiracy despite the records of infections and deaths-to filling in the gap created by the shortage of services in their local communities.
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Being innovative and motivated by the desire to always do good no matter the circumstances, Scouts across Africa have been actively helping the authorities and those on the frontline.
Scouts disinfecting Mawe Complex in Kalulushi, Zambia after a worker tested COVID-19 positive.
As I prepare this blog, reports have come in about the work of Scouts across Zambia. In Zambia, the Rover Scouts (18-26 years of age) have been involved in a vast campaign of getting the COVID-19 messages across. The campaign consists of building trust with the local community, conveying factual messages in vernacular, collecting information on the needs of the community, as well as collecting and distributing donations (hand washing equipment and face masks). In Ndola, the Chiluba Rover Scouts have been trained to help with screening people and orienting those in need of medical care. Similar and many more activities are witnessed in other countries.
Some of these activities are made possible by financial support through the COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund of the World Organization of the Scout Movement (WOSM). But, these initiatives are all the brainchild and action of Scouts themselves, responding to the unique aspects of their local community.
It is also in this sense that I see Scouting as a grassroots educational youth movement that is truly bottom-up in its structure and approach. Indeed, through peer-to-peer leadership supported by adults, each local Scout group embraces the same set of values illustrated in the Scout Promise and Law and follows a similar system of non-formal education suited to the unique aspects of their local community. Through this system that is also known as the patrol/team system and which constitutes the DNA of the movement, each Scout group defines its own priorities and implements its own activities in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity. The other levels (national, regional, and global) constitute a network of support and solidarity in a global action that starts locally.
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Ivorian Scouts (Eclaireuses Eclaireurs de Côte d’Ivoire - EEDCI) making face masks for distribution to most vulnerable communities.
Many times I have been asked what I am doing in Scouting which is a youth movement. An orthodox answer would be that Scouting is a youth educational movement under the guidance of the adults. Still, having benefited from Scouting at a tender age, my passion for professionally working for the movement can be best described in terms of building local capacities for peace in the broader sense.
Indeed, I joined the World Scout Bureau from a pretty solid humanitarian and peacebuilding background, having worked with a number of local and international NGOs in the field. However, whereas humanitarian action is noble work in that it helps to alleviate the plights of many who, so to speak, may otherwise not survive another day, it focuses on the consequences rather than the roots of what creates such a situation. On the contrary, I see local Scout groups as an opportunity to address humanitarian emergencies from within rather than from outside the local community.
Ivorian Scouts (Eclaireuses Eclaireurs de Côte d’Ivoire - EEDCI) distributing face masks to vendors at the local market.
I recall the discussions with local partners during my first official visit to Burkina Faso, along with our WOSM Secretary General Luc Panissod, back in November 2009. An exceptionally heavy seasonal downpour, not seen in almost a century, had broken the dam of Loumbila reservoir in the center of the capital Ouagadougou, causing the loss of eight lives and the displacement of over 100,000 people.
While praising the support of Scouts to the emergency team and the affected families, all the partners - including the Prime Minister, church, local community leaders, as well as TV and radio journalists - expressed the need to further develop Scouting in the country in readiness for future eventualities. It was evident in the discourse of the partners that if the community had more people trained in life skills that were ready to deploy as the Scouts are, such an incident would have caused less destruction and internal resources would also contribute to community resilience.
Likewise, many local and international actors seek partnership with the movement to take advantage of its expansive network of social good actors, oblivious of what it takes to establish and sustain such a network. Having noted this as a challenge to effective engagement with prospective partners, the movement developed a document to guide the establishment of voluntary and collaborative relationships to achieve mutual goals and experiences between Scouting organizations and other entities by exchanging and sharing what they have in an educational process or project.
Indeed, depending on the age one joins the movement, on average Scouts spend four formative years, under the guidance of dedicated adults, to become active and responsible citizens creating positive change in their communities. I am always grateful to partners, including parents, who support the development of local Scout groups as a way to build local capacities in a network of global action.
There are many more examples and stories from around the world of how over 54 million young people, adult leaders and volunteers in 224 countries and territories worldwide are contributing to addressing challenges in their local communities and responding to the diverse needs and aspirations of young people.
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