Eagle honor: It is a time-honored award, well-worth earning

For 79 Tuscarora Council Scouts, this weekend marked an accomplishment very few people can put on their resumes.

They can now call themselves Eagle Scouts.

In this day of technology and other competitors for their time and interest, these young men committed to not only the goal of earning Scouting's highest honor, but also to serving their community as well.

You don't earn an Eagle Scout award just by being in Scouting a long time.

You can't buy your way into the honor -- or have your parents do the work.

To make it to this level, you have to commit to a project, plan it and then execute it -- all while trying to balance a busy teenage and high school life.

Few young people want to commit that kind of time to such a project, so less than 5 percent of Boy Scouts make it to this lofty perch.

And that is why it is such an honor.

The values that are taught in Scouting are tools that can be used by young people to reach their dreams -- and to guide them later when they become adults.

It is nice to see so many young men understanding just how special such an achievement is -- and to see them striving to follow in the footsteps of generations of other Eagles.

It really goes back to what many Americans are saying they want to see return to their country -- a rekindling of the values that make us strong.

How nice to see a group of young men who have embraced that call to service and excellence.

Published in Editorials on January 31, 2011 11:05 AM