This past week, fourteen of us traveled to Summit Bechtel Reserve for an incredible high adventure trip. Our crew included five adults and nine Scouts, three of whom joined us as guests from other troops. Once we arrived, our crew was combined with two other crews, one from Missouri and one from Ohio. Together, we became one large group, paddling the New River Gorge, cooking meals, cleaning up camp, and taking on every challenge as a large team.
Whenever you bring together people who have never met before, you don’t know how it’s going to go. Will everyone stay with the friends they already know? Will there be cliques? Will someone feel like an outsider?
I’m proud to say that’s not what happened.
From the very first day, our Scouts welcomed the guest Scouts into our crew. By the end of the week, it didn’t feel like Troop 505 and three guests. It just felt like one crew.
As our crew joined two others, the same spirit could be seen throughout the larger group. Crews took turns cooking and cleaning for everyone. Scouts encouraged one another on the river, helped each other build campfires with wet wood, shared responsibilities around camp, and built friendships that crossed troop and state lines. Before long, it didn’t feel like three separate crews. It felt like one team.
That didn’t happen by accident.
It happened because every Scout lived the Scout Law.
A Scout is Friendly. They make the first move. They introduce themselves and invite others into the conversation.
A Scout is Helpful. They carry a boat, wash a dish, or lend a hand without being asked.
A Scout is Kind. They notice the person standing alone and make sure they know they belong.
A Scout is Courteous. They treat everyone with respect and recognize that every person has something to contribute.
This week, you’ll have opportunities to do the same thing. On a team, at church, or in your neighborhood, you’ll meet someone who’s new or someone who doesn’t quite feel like they fit in.
Be the Scout who makes room.
Invite them into the conversation. Sit with them. Include them in your group. You may never know how much that simple act means to someone else.
The best crews aren’t made because everyone starts together. They’re made because everyone is welcomed together.
Let’s keep being the kind of troop that leaves people feeling like they belong, not just on a river in West Virginia, but everywhere we go.
Yours in Scouting,
Kyle Ellison
Scoutmaster, Troop 505