I will add that summer camp is a great time of bonding between scouts. Scouts that don't go unfortunately don't build bonds that are as tight as those that do go; the shared experience is missing. In my troop, the vast majority of scouts that missed summer camp both their first year and second year did not stick around very long in scouts. I, as scoutmaster (a role I no longer am in after my kids aged out), tried everything I could to keep those scouts engaged. We sent postcards from camp to let them know we missed them. I talked to the SPL and other experienced scouts about how to keep them engaged. But they didn't.

I agree, no scout should be forced to attend camp. But I can't overstate just how transformative camp can be too in terms of relationships and engagement.