A s the father of a 13-year old Boy Scout, a Scouting volunteer and a member of the Inland Northwest Council’s executive board, I find the recent stories regarding Mayor West of particular concern.

The council has no record of any report regarding these accusations prior to this story. The accusations of abuse are serious and must be investigated, and they cause us to reflect on what Scouting does to ensure the safety of our children.

I want you to know that Scouting is a safe place for our youth. Scouting is a national leader in Youth Protection Education, Training and Policies. These programs have been in place for nearly 20 years.

Child abuse is a societal problem that requires our utmost attention and the diligence of parents, schools, churches, sports teams and organizations that work with youth. The Boy Scouts address this issue on five levels:

“Education and training for youth members, leaders and parents in detecting and preventing child abuse. The very first badge my son earned as both a Cub Scout and a Boy Scout required completion of “How to Protect Your Children from Child Abuse: A Parent’s Guide,” located on the inside of all Cub Scout and Boy Scout handbooks. It deals with everything from teaching Scouts the Child’s Bill of Rights and how to recognize, resist and report threats to their well-being, to how to protect themselves when using the Internet.

“A rigorous leader selection procedure including unit committee approval, chartered organization approval and nationwide criminal background checks conducted by the council. When I applied to be a leader, I had to provide background information, references and details on any criminal history.

“Barriers that prevent abuse, such as two-deep leadership, no one-on-one activities, separate sleeping accommodations for youth and adults and privacy for children. The Boy Scouts are sticklers on these issues. If a troop is planning a campout and one of the two scheduled leaders is unable to attend at the last minute, the campout must be rescheduled unless another leader or parent can substitute. Scouts are not allowed to sleep in the same tents with adults, unless it is their own parent.

“The council promptly reports any suspected abuse to authorities and cooperates fully with authorities to investigate suspected abuse. Scouting enforces a zero-tolerance policy on abuse of children.

“The Boy Scouts take any allegations of abuse seriously and take swift action to remove questionable leaders. Scouting errs on the side of protecting children and it maintains a nationwide “ineligible list” of adults who are not permitted to be involved in Scouting.

I encourage you to review Scouting’s youth protection educational programs, policies and interactive Youth Protection Training by visiting the Web site at www.NorthwestScouts.org. (Go to the “Resources” tab and click on “Youth Protection Program.”)

Any instance of abuse is one too many – no child should ever be subject to abuse. My heart goes out to children and families who have had to deal with abuse in any setting. We as a community must all work together to ensure that children are protected. One of the best ways to educate youth and parents is through Scouting. Scouting teaches more youth and parents annually about child abuse and how to prevent it than any other organization in the United States.

Scouting has provided my son with many personal growth opportunities. His pinewood derby experience taught him how to compete and lose gracefully. His interest in science was encouraged and stimulated by his den leader. Planning a camping trip from start to finish taught him responsibility, organization and leadership, and boosted his self-confidence tremendously. He has been trained to think on his feet and to speak in public. Scouting has helped transform him from a “can’t do” child to an “everything is possible” young man.

There are many boys in our community who would benefit greatly from the program who aren’t enrolled as Scouts. Boys are clearly safer and more apt to succeed by participating in Scouting, rather than spending their time in front of television sets, computer games, the Internet and the like. Through Scouting, our children are learning life skills while developing civic responsibility that will benefit all of us in the years ahead.