STATISTICS:

Boy Scout Alumni are: 71% of football captains 65% of basketball captains 85% of student council presidents 88% of school newspaper editors 77% of editors of school annuals 75% of business managers of school publications 80% of junior class presidents 89% of senior class presidents 65% of college graduates 72% of Rhodes Scholars 75% of Military Academy graduates 65% of U.S. Congress 85% of airline pilots 85% of FBI agents 26 of the first 29 astronauts were Boy Scouts 11 of the 12 astronauts who walked on the moon were Boy Scouts Over half of the 108 Scout astronauts attained Star, Life, or Eagle ranks For every 100 young men who join the Boy Scouts: 12 will have their first contact with a church 5 will earn their religious emblem 2 will enter the clergy 1 will use Scout skills to save a life 1 will use Scout skills to save his own life 2 will become Eagle Scouts 18 will enter professions first learned through the Merit Badge system 17 will become Scouting volunteers and pass their skills, inspiration, and leadership along to countless youths 28 will develop hobbies started in Scouting that will give them lifelong interests And . . . Only rarely will one appear in a criminal or juvenile court! And yet, amazingly Scouting reaches only 25 percent of the youth in the country!    Source: Scouter’s Digest, Volume 6, Number 31

FUN FACTS:

Scouting’s reach and presence is everywhere! You might be surprised at just how far and wide:

• The Silver Buffalo Award for distinguished service to youth has been presented to Charles Lindbergh, Norman Rockwell, Walt Disney, Bob Hope, Hank Aaron, Vince Lombardi, Charles M. Schultz and Neil Armstrong.

• Of the 294 U.S. astronauts, more than 180 were involved in Scouting, and 40 were Eagle Scouts.

• In 2004, if every registered member of the Boy Scouts of America were still alive—more than 109 million people—they’d comprise the 11th largest country in the world.

• Nearly 1.2 million volunteers donate an average of 20 hours per month to BSA, totaling 280 million hours of time during the year.

• One out of every three of West Point cadets was involved in Boy Scouting as a youth, and 14 percent are Eagle Scouts.

• Nearly one-third of Air Force Academy cadets were involved in Boy Scouting, and 14 percent are Eagle Scouts.

• The most often earned merit badges include: First aid, Swimming, Camping, Cooking, and Citizenship in the Community.

• If the 109,829,417 merit badges earned through the end of 2005 were lined up end-to-end would make a straight line that would stretch from Chicago to Los Angeles— over 2,500 miles.

• Pinewood derby cars made since 1954 could form a line stretching from Los Angeles to New York and back—a total of more than 5,500 miles.

• If a Boy Scout attends his weekly patrol and troop meeting, participates in a monthly weekend troop outing, and attends a long-term summer camp with his troop, he will have spent as much time with Scouting in a year as he spends in the classroom.