I wonder if work culture has also had an impact on membership declines. Both of my parents had good, steady jobs with the same employer for 30+ years, but they rarely worked over 40 hours per week. Today, my wife and are always within 20 feet of our laptops. We log-in during off hours to get caught up or work ahead. At times, I wonder if this is really necessary since our jobs aren't that great; however, they are good enough where we don't want to lose them. I'm sorry to say the thought of taking kids camping for a full weekend sounds exhausting.

Agreed. I do not know the settlement of the wrongful death suit (August, 2023) against Aloha Council/BSA. Some random concerns I do not understand why "commercial ranges"  are assumed safer than member-only sportsmen clubs (prohibited?) or more cooperative with an outside group program. This will likely end Council relationships with local, non-commercial sportsmen club which not only teach firearm safety and marksmanship but often host Klondike Derbies and scout fundraising events (turkey shoots, clay-breaking). The Marksman Experience at Bechtel will have to drop high-powered rifle after Sept 1.  Long distance shooting, e.g. 1000 yards ends. .30-06 (center-fire) shooting at Philmont will end. Will Philmont Sportsman Adventure end? Unit shooting teams? Some members buy and use their own rifles for competitions. Back in the day, here he goes again,  I bought and used my own rifle to earn Marksmanship Merit Badge. I still shoot my old Mossberg 340. I found no new rules regarding the secure (vault) storage of firearms and ammunition at camps or off-site. IMHO, hunter education and firearm instruction will be a safe and fun family activity outside of Scouting. My $0.02,

@AwakeEnergyScouter, do you really see a lot of damage and suffering caused by men who cling to traditional gender roles? Can you provide an example? I do believe there is such thing as "toxic masculinity" (where one's narrow focus on perceived masculine attributes becomes a net negative on society or their personal relationships), but men embracing the traditional "provider" role is still largely a good thing. Think of how many of today's problems could be solved by a present father who ensured his children were housed, clothed, and fed. I view the lack of masculinity as the greater pitfall. ** And to be clear, my wife and I have a lot of strengths and interests that follow traditional gender roles and some that don't. Every couple is different and that's OK. This isn't some weird flex on my part. I'm not particularly handy, I drive an old Camry, and would take a margarita over a beer. I do, however, earn enough to pay our bills, save a little for retirement, and occasionally buy a sweet Lego set. 🙂

It's more of the former - I look back fondly on that experience now. During those formative years, I didn't spend much time contemplating the role of Scouting in my life. I just enjoyed being a Boy Scout.   My closest friends in middle school and high school were all boys. Around 8th grade, we started mingling with a group of girls at our school, but there was always a separate "boy clique" and "girl clique."   I developed a better sense of self-awareness over time. One of the biggest challenges of those early teen years is that our bodies are becoming adult-like, yet we lack the emotional maturity of an adult.

Probably trace this directly to Hawaii I think.  No changes noted for archery.