We got home and I immediately began to map out our options with Wolf and Bobcat. All the merit badge requirements can be found here: http://www.scouting.org/ with handy-dandy pdfs breaking down what to do. This, combined with the Boy Scout handbook and Internet search engines were all the resources we needed to get started. We wanted to start out by looking into the Eagle Scout requirements... from a Merit Badge stand point, Eagle Scouts have to earn the following 13 badges:
- Camping
- Cooking
- One of: Swimming, Hiking or Cycling (though we planned to earn them all)
- Citizenship in the Community
- Citizenship in the Nation
- Citizenship in the World
- Communication
- One of: Lifesaving or Emergency Preparedness
- One of: Environmental Science or Sustainability
- Family Life
- First Aid
- Personal Fitness
- Personal Management
In addition, an Eagle Scout would need to earn 8 elective merit badges. The merit badges that peaked our interest either individually or as a group included:
- Archery
- Art
- Automotive Maintenance
- Backpacking
- Bird Study
- Bugling
- Canoeing
- Chess
- Climbing
- Coin Collecting
- Cycling
- Digital Technology
- Dog Care
- Exploration
- Fishing
- Game Design
- Gardening
- Graphic Arts
- Insect Study
- Kayaking
- Leatherwork
- Mammal Study
- Medicine
- Metalwork
- Music
- Nature
- Painting
- Pets
- Plant Science
- Plumbing
- Pottery
- Programming
- Public Health
- Public Speaking
- Reading
- Reptile and Amphibian Study
- Scuba Diving
- Signs Signals and Codes
- Whitewater
- Wilderness Survival
- Wood Carving
- Woodwork
It was around this time, as we dug into the actual requirements of being an Eagle Scout, that we decided to take a different path. Some of the Eagle Scout requirements can't really be completed unless you are in a scout troop and under the age of 19. At the same time, there were some religious undertones that didn't sit well with us. In the end, we opted to create our own renegade scout group. One that accepted men, women or any gender identity... one that didn't discriminate or attempt to be prescriptive regarding religion or sexual orientation. We were interested in learning, and the merit badges presented a wonderful opportunity to do that, but there was no reason to follow the Boy Scout directive as adults. We also wanted to pick an icon that represented this new path. One that encapsulated the scouting aspect of what we were doing, but that lost some of the nationalistic components. Don't get me wrong, Eagles are amazing creatures, but the name was taken and the bird comes with implications.
After some discussion, we decided to call ourselves Raven Scouts... I spent a little time mocking up an icon that incorporated the boy scout's use of the fleur de lis, while also bringing in a raven. This kept the bird theme, but let us take some liberties. Our scout troop would be dedicated to learning, supporting each other, and having a great time exploring the wilderness together. Thus the Raven Scouts were born.
Let the adventure begin...
-Mouse
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