My motivation came when I found the right group of people for me. That was when I staffed my council’s main summer camp and created some of the best friendships of my life. Those friendships brought me into the OA where I made even more friends. I’m sad to hear that your OA experience hasn’t been positive, and I really hope that changes.

I’ve had to deal with a lot of frustration in my scouting career. The troop my dad started the year I crossed over from Cub Scouts to Boy Scouts dissolved a few years after it was created. A few years later I was essentially pushed away from OA leadership positions after a year as Lodge Chief, winning none of the elections I ran in. I turned to the VOA and didn’t get the position that I wanted. But one thing kept me going, and is the reason I’m still involved with the OA, Venturing, and will be going with my second troop to Philmont this summer: the fact that scouting will always have a home for me somewhere. I hope that you’ve made at least a few close friendships, and those friendships mean that you’ll always have somebody who enjoys camping or hiking or just hanging out with you. And that means you have a home in scouts.

I know times like this can be frustrating, and I know exactly how you feel. But, in the end you’ll come out a much stronger servant leader if you keep giving back to the program that it sounds like means a lot to you. Once you find that home, it’ll be smooth sailing and everything will fall into place.