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AUSTIN (KXAN) — Beatrix Jackman was nearly speechless. “I don’t even know what to say.” Her mask fell off because she was smiling so much over her gift — one she rightfully earned. “Thank you to everybody who has helped me along this path.” (KXAN Photo/Todd Bailey) Jackman, 19, is officially an Eagle Scout as a member of Scouts BSA Troop 2019. She received her Eagle award Thursday morning outside her home in north central Austin. Capitol Area Council’s Director of Marketing and Public Relations Charles Mead surprised her and her mom Julie Ziegelman with the medal and certificate. “I’m...

The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) issued a statement in support of the Black Lives Matter movement on Monday, calling it a "human rights issue" and saying a "diversity and inclusion" merit badge will be a requirement for Eagle Scouts going forward. The BSA executive committee in its statement expressed regret for "not [being] as brave as we should have been" on using the group's platform to address racism.

Those Eagle Scouts, Mr. President, built those benches, supplied those homeless shelters, restored those wetlands, and created that artificial reef. Yes, they traveled on roads paid for by tax dollars, but they didn’t wait for any bureaucrat to design their project, or any pol to authorize an appropriation. True, the Scouts didn’t do it simply by their individual selves, either. They did it in, through, and with something to which the President seems blind: the civil society that exists between the Leviathan federal state and the atomized individual.

NEW YORK (AP) -- For the physician in Illinois, the attorney in Kentucky, the arts editor in Oregon, their Eagle Scout medals were treasured reminders of youthful achievement. Yet each is parting with his medal out of dismay over the Boy Scouts' recently reaffirmed policy of excluding gays. ### In contrast to Obama, Republican candidate Mitt Romney does have a public position on the Scouts' policy -- he politely disagrees with it. Back in 1994, during a political debate in Massachusetts, Romney said this: "I support the right of the Boy Scouts of America to decide what it wants to...

One hundred years ago on Aug. 1, Arthur Eldred, a 17-year-old Boy Scout from Long Island, became the first person to earn the Eagle Scout rank. Eldred, tall, quiet and with a shock of dark hair, had joined scouting largely at the behest of his widowed mother, who hoped it would give some structure to his life. Yet as Eagle Scouts would continue to do throughout the next century, Eldred caught the scouting world by surprise. He was the first of an extraordinary new cohort of young men who were to prove very different from the classic 13-year-old Boy Scout...

The Boy Scouts of America's stance of not allowing openly gay people to serve as troop leaders or members has inspired several Eagle Scouts to return their hard-earned medals and renounce their membership.

The Boy Scouts' motto is: Be prepared. Who knew it meant preparing to de fend themselves against union thuggery? Kids, pay attention: This is a teachable moment for all of you on power, politics and Big Labor's culture of corruption. At last week's City Council meeting in Allentown, Pa., a top official of the local Service Employees International Union chapter ranted about 17-year-old Scout Kevin Anderson's park-cleanup work. To earn an Eagle Scout badge, Anderson devoted some 200 hours to picking up trash and helping clear a 1,000-foot walking path with fellow members of Boy Scouts Troop 301 of Center...

A brouhaha over a Boy Scout and his Eagle Scout project has brought down a local union leader. Nick Balzano has stepped down as head of the local Service Employees International Union. Balzano was roundly criticized for crying foul over a Boy Scout's effort to clear a walking path in a park in Allentown. He said the project was taking work away from union workers. Six other high-ranking members of the union have also resigned.

ARLINGTON, Nov. 18, 2009 – Character was the focus as Scouting saluted the military yesterday. U.S. Rep. Ike Skelton of Missouri told about 500 people from Boy Scouts’ National Capital Area Council that the values of Boy Scouts and the military are constant and that both organizations seek to serve something greater than themselves. This was the first Scout dinner saluting the military. Retired Navy Capt. Scott Gray, who now works with event sponsor General Dynamics, said he hopes to make the event an annual affair. The Crystal Gateway Marriott – a stone’s throw from the Pentagon – hosted the...

More mischief from the SEIU? SEIU members think they are entitled to work and make money. Of course, if there is no government money to fund projects and volunteers step in and take up the slack, union thugs are demanding all work stop. It’s not fair! Cry me a river. From Jarrett Renshaw of the Morning Call. In pursuit of an Eagle Scout badge, Kevin Anderson, 17, has toiled for more than 200 hours hours over several weeks to clear a walking path in an east Allentown park. Little did the do-gooder know that his altruistic act would put him...

Lucas Wondra has achieved something only about 4 % of those who enter scouting achieve. He has achieved the rank of Eagle Scout. His achievement is particularly significant because the 16-year-old Hutchinson (Kansas) High School student has the genetic disorder Down Syndrome. Lucas is one of many who are demonstrating that individuals with Down Syndrome can be productive members of society. Maybe they are not capable of performing brain surgery or becoming professional athletes, but then neither are the vast majority of the rest of us. Individuals with Down Syndrome have an extra copy of chromosome 21 , a condition...

Q: Let’s talk about your new book, “On My Honor,” which draws on your experience as an Eagle Scout and champions the values of the Boy Scouts of America, to whom you are donating your royalties. A: Yes, to their legal-defense fund. Q: Which has been fighting the A.C.L.U., to keep gays out of the scouts. Why do you see that as a worthy cause? A: I am pretty clear about this one. Scouting ought to be about building character, not about sex. Period. Precious few parents enroll their boys in the Scouts to get a crash course in sexual...

High-profile role for Scouts at Ford funeralhttp://www.woodtv.com/global/story.asp?s=5864166 Updated: Dec 27, 2006 07:36 PM CST By ANNE SCHIEBER WALKER -- One group that will be paying special tribute to former President Gerald R. Ford is the Boy Scouts. Ford was a tireless promoter of the Boy Scouts because he was one; and a top one. He has been the only President to earn the Scouts' highest honor of Eagle Scout. Ford's family has asked that West Michigan Boy Scouts have a prominent role in the funeral in Grand Rapids. Thousands are expected to line the streets of the motorcade along Fulton...

Check this out: "Reveille" http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2487638612433437293&q=Veterans

Troop 4 honors two new Eagle Scouts Friday, August 18, 2006 MILFORD -- Joshua Avery and Alexander Mattscheck were presented with Eagle Scout medals at a court of honor ceremony held recently at St. Mary's church. Only two percent of all scouts reach the rank of eagle scout. An eagle scout must complete at least 21 merit badges and organize a service project that benefits either his church, community or school. Both Avery and Mattscheck began in scouting as cub scouts with pack 4

Family welcomes 12th Eagle Scouthttp://www.tmnews.com/articles/2006/07/16/sections/news/news74.txt http://tinyurl.com/rwvkn Sunday, July 16, 2006 Last modified: Sunday, July 16, 2006 6:46 AM CDT By Jason Mullis, Hoosier Times BEDFORD - There are 12 virtues the American Boy Scouts espouse to the youth in their charge. Similarly, when Travis Scherschel earned the highest rank of Eagle Scout Saturday, he became the 12th Scherschel to do so. "Becoming an Eagle Scout is an outstanding achievement, which requires hard work and dedication," Mark Scherschel, Travis' father, read from a letter from President George W. Bush. "Your accomplishment serves as an example of excellence and a source of...

When Michael Ward of Troop 406 in Phoenix, Ariz., learned that Hurricane Katrina had destroyed all 9,612 books in the Anniston Elementary School library in Gulfport, Miss., he resolved to dedicate his Eagle Scout project to collecting enough books to restock the library. After getting approval from his local school board, Michael sent fliers about the book drive to the 32 schools in his district. Students were eager to help, collecting books and donating school supplies, while the school district agreed to deliver the books to a central location. When Michael invited local businesses to participate, a bookstore chain set...

WEYAUWEGA, Wis. -- Gary Hirte, a high school scholar, star athlete and Eagle Scout whose name seemed to be in the local paper all the time, is accused of committing murder--not for money or revenge, but just to see if he could get away with it. The Weyauwega-Fremont High senior's arrest last month was met with shock and disbelief in this town of 1,800, where Hirte has long been held in high esteem. The 18-year-old was accused of killing 37-year-old Glenn Kopitske. "He wanted to see if he could do this. It was like a challenge for him," sheriff's Capt....

Blacklisting the Boy Scouts By: Mark Pulliam The Boy Scouts of America are under attack—again—this time from an unlikely source: the organized bar. Notwithstanding the 2000 decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in Boy Scouts of America vs. Dale, affirming the constitutional right of the Boy Scouts to exclude avowed homosexuals as adult leaders, the battle is not over. Groups opposed to the traditional values espoused by the Boy Scouts continue their campaign of intimidation and pressure. In California, several local bar associations are seeking to ostracize the Boy Scouts by prohibiting state court judges from participating in the organization...