Scoutreach

Service and Leadership: Atlanta Area Council Boy Scouts touring the State Capitol with Lt. Gov. Burt Jones on 2023 Scout Day, photo: contributed.

The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) offers opportunities for personal growth, civic activism and leadership development, but it requires expenses that may seem out of reach for children from underserved, low-income communities. Scoutreach, a division of the BSA, works to address those needs and level the playing field.

“We try to develop passionate adult leaders in urban, suburban and rural areas, removing barriers to ensure that all youth have the opportunity to join Scouting,” says Tracy Techau, Scout executive/CEO of the BSA’s Atlanta Area Council. “The Atlanta Area Council is dedicated to ensuring that every child has an opportunity to join Scouting, to be a Scout, no matter their circumstance.”

Scoutreach provides uniforms, handbooks and transportation and funds “camperships” – scholarships for camping trips, which require tents, sleeping bags and other accessories.

Much of Scoutreach’s work in Georgia takes place in South Fulton and South Cobb, but the group is statewide and nationwide. “The goal is to keep [the kids] in this beneficial environment as long as possible. We had eight Eagle Scouts last year,” Techau says.

The organization serves about 1,200 children in Metro Atlanta every year with roughly 400 of them attending summer camps where they have the opportunity to study STEM subjects.

Scoutreach works with corporate partners including The Coca-Cola Company, Delta Air Lines, The Home Depot, Chick-fil-A and Graphic Packaging.

Girls can participate, too. “We fully welcome girls, but boys remain about 90% of our members,” Techau says. “We have separate troops for boys and girls.”

Many alumni of this group end up joining the staff, he says. “They really develop responsibility that contributes long term, in so many ways, to their jobs, families and communities.”