All current and past scouts were welcomed to join us to celebrate Scout Shabbat on Friday, February 11, 2022.

Our local Jewish Committee on Scouting (JCOS), part of the Boy Scouts of America’s Dan Beard Council, in conjunction with Rockdale Temple, sponsored a Scout Shabbat on Friday, February 11, 2022, at Rockdale Temple with services beginning at 6:15pm. The Scout Law states that a Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent.  To uphold the last pillar in the Scout law, a scout is reverent, the Jewish Committee on Scouting instituted Scout Shabbat in 2017. Past celebrations have been hosted by Congregation Beth Adam (2017), Wise Temple (2018), Beth Israel Congregation (2019) and Temple Sholom (2020). Due to the pandemic, Scout Shabbat was not held in 2021 so we are happy to have the opportunity to meet again in person to welcome Shabbat and are grateful to Rockdale Temple for hosting. 

Youth that participate in Scouting have the opportunity to earn several Jewish religious awards as they advance through the ranks of Cub Scout, Scouts BSA or Venture Scout. Scouts must complete tasks and fulfill requirements prescribed by the National Jewish Committee on Scouting to earn the Maccabee and Aleph awards as Cub Scouts, the Ner Tamid award and the Etz Chaim emblem as a Scout or Venture Scout. Scouting is open to all genders and teaches leadership skills, teamwork, volunteerism, environmentalism, and citizenship through activities such as camping, cooking, orienteering, hiking and during youth meetings. The highest honors a scout may earn are the Eagle badge in Scouts BSA or the Venturing Summit Award for Venture Scouts. To earn these ranks, one must fulfill a rigorous set of requirements, complete a service project and participate in a board of review. 

All current and former scouts, as well as scouts interested in learning more about the Jewish faith, were invited to attend and participate in the service. The Chaverim M’Israel, Lior and Nitzan, joined us for this special service! Lior chatted with fellow Scouts about the Israeli Scouting program and learned about their experiences in scouting.

Many Cub Scouts, Scouts in Scouts BSA, Venture Scouts and their families attended this year’s Scout Shabbat, held on Friday, February 11, 2022, at 6:15pm at the Rockdale Temple located at 8501 Ridge Road, Cincinnati, OH, 45236

Please contact Molly Polasky, JCOS Committee member, at molly.polasky@gmail.com for questions.