Our Mission
by Terry Howerton
Publisher and Editor-in-Chief
There are at least 370
great ideas included in this issue -- for all types of Scout Leaders
It has been a long, but exciting ride. And here we are. This grass roots magazine for
Scouting— your magazine— has just completed its first six issue volume set. And,
along the way, we have become the largest independent publication in the history of
American Scouting. What began as an idea for a simple newsletter of program helps
has blossomed into the print and Internet resources that are enjoyed by tens of thousands
of Scouters from every corner of the country.
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Limited Edition Charter Subscriber Patch |
Complimentary to all subscribers who joined during our first 6 issues
PATCH IS
MAILED WITH ISSUE 6 TO PAID SUBSCRIBERS |
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To each of you, our readers, please allow us to send a heartfelt thank you for
your support of this effort. I especially wish to thank those first few thousand who
joined us during Issue #1. You have stood by and cheered as we tried to deliver on our
promise to you and to the Movement. To all of our subscribers, please accept the Charter
Subscriber patch included with this issue as our free gift to you for joining us
during the first six issues. It is a limited edition run, and only available to those who
joined our ranks during Volume 1.
The growth of the resources published by our group is a true testament to the hundreds
of thousands of adult volunteers who give of their time, their money and theirselves for
the Scouting program that they love. It is from that spirit— the feeling among Scout
leaders that we all belong to an extended family— that we draw our energy and passion
for the work that we put in.
A quick glance down the masthead of the magazine will reveal that the staff of this
publication is very much the product of the Movement that we now celebrate. We
share your enthusiasm for the promise of Scouting, and we are honored to be able to return
something to the program that has given each of us so much.
An Eye Toward the Future
As we conclude our first volume, the time has come for us to more publically define our
Mission, before someone else decides to define it for us.
I have been very flattered by the continual support of our effort from all levels of
the Scout organization. I have also been amazed at the differing perspectives on just who
we are and what it is that we are trying to accomplish.
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Our
focus is on the Movement of Scouting, the movement that exists in a very
real sense in the mentoring relationship between one boy and one adult, in the middle of
nowhere on a cold winter campout |
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I have heard our magazine described as everything from a “great
resource for real Scouting” to a “fantastic little renegade
publication.” Both of those remarks were intended as a complement. One
reader wrote after the release of the last issue that he felt we had “lost our
edge” because he didn’t detect a willingness to criticize the BSA where it
needed criticism. I have even heard from volunteers and professionals alike that fear we
are trying to “reinvent the Boy Scouts of America.” To those small few who hold
these perceptions or just don’t know what our goal really is for this magazine, I say
this: “Folks, it’s really simple. The statement at the top of this page says
it all. ‘There are 370 great ideas for Scout leaders in this issue.’
That’s it. That’s our objective, in a nutshell.”
We draw a very clear, and very important, distinction between the Movement of Scouting
and the organization of Scouting. The organization, at least in this country, is
headquartered in Texas and structured into 327 Scout councils. The Boy Scouts of America
(the organization) is one the most successful youth organizations in the history of the
United States. While our staff are all active members of the organization (at nearly every
level), we try not to make that the focus of this magazine.
Our focus— our goals, our obligation and our commitment— for this magazine is
to the Movement of Scouting. The Movement exists in 149 countries and has touched hundreds
of millions of lives through the youth of the world. The Movement lives in the hearts and
minds of all who have come into contact with it. But most of all, the Movement of Scouting
can best be found in the mentoring relationship between one adult and one boy on a cold
winter campout in the middle of nowhere.
That’s the same commitment that the Boy Scouts of America has made... to continue
to grow the Scouting Movement in size and impact.
Our Mission, with SCOUTER Magazine, really has very little to do with the organization
of the BSA. We are happy to be of service to them, and we are proud of the good working
relationship we have developed with the national organization and many local councils.
But our commitment is most precisely to that young boy and the adult out on that
campout. What can we do to equip that adult with the tools he needs to be even more
effective in sharing the Movement with that boy? This question is the yardstick by which
we try to measure everything that we do with our publications.
Our Goals:
As we enter our second volume set and a new year approaches, let me share with you some of
the goals of our group:
We will continue our support to the Movement. I personally believe
there is no greater experience a boy can have in Scouting than a trip to summer camp. And,
in 1999 our company will continue to help send kids to camp by donating a share of our
income to council campership funds throughout the country. We will offer a chance to our
advertisers and customers to help support us in this cause.
We will expand the editorial content of our magazine and web sites. We
will continue to identify the needs of all types of adult leaders and equip them with the
ideas and information they want to be successful. We will also expand our emphasis on
tools for young people in the organization to hone their leadership skills.
We will continue to financially strengthen our company and expand our staff
so that we can increase the frequency of our publications and grow the resources we
provide. We will expand our free Internet services to Scout groups, in a tradition of
sharing the resources of our company.
We will significantly expand the offerings of great products through our 1-800-SCOUTER Catalog, and continue to
improve our fulfillment and customer service from this division.
Let me know your thoughts on our efforts...
Thanks... and GOOD SCOUTING TO YOU!
TERRY HOWERTON
Editor-in-Chief
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