It’s Boy Scout week, and we’d like to take this opportunity to salute the 94-year-old organization, which urges members to do a good turn daily.

The incorporation papers for the organization stated the purpose: &uot; … to promote, through organization, and cooperation with other agencies, the ability of boys to do things for themselves and others, to train them in Scoutcraft, and to teach them patriotism, courage, self-reliance, and kindred virtues, using the methods which are in common use by Boy Scouts.&uot;

Today, the Boy Scouts of America has served over 100 million members since its inception, and its mission is to &uot;instill values in young people.&uot;

Over 400 youth and leaders are involved in the Albert Lea Boy Scouts in six Cub Scout packs, five Boy Scout troops, and two Exploring posts. Many of Albert Lea’s community leaders are former Scouts or Eagle Scouts.

The statistics tell us that some youths who have been involved in Scouting turn out to be some pretty upstanding adults: Every man to have walked on the moon was an Eagle Scout. Seventy-five percent of all Rhodes Scholars were Scouts. Eighty percent of the graduates from all U.S. military academies were Scouts.

What’s more, for every 100 boys who join Scouting, 12 will have their first contact with an organized religion through Scouting, eight will maintain that relationship for the rest of their lives, and two will become ministers. And millions of Boy Scouts have saved lives because of the skills they learned as Scouts.

Obviously, the Scout Law &045; &uot;A Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent&uot; &045; are good words for all of us to live by.

We salute those who are or have been involved in Scouting.