“I started coming to the Cub Scout meetings with my oldest son,” says Lumsden. “Then I was asked if I could take on a leadership role with the Cub Scout pack. I saw the impact that Scouting had on my son and myself and looked at what it was doing for others and concluded I really did not have a choice. It was the right thing to do.”
Lumsden has since served a variety of roles with the Scouts, from Cubmaster to different committee positions as well as the assistant Scoutmaster, then Scoutmaster for Troop 313, chartered to the Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization.
The troop welcomes Scouts of all faiths and has consistently been regarded as a successful troop, where both Scouts and their leaders take advantage of the training programs available to them. This training came in handy for Lumsden when he took a group of Scouts on one of Scouting’s most grueling hikes.
Lumsden and his fellow leaders take Troop 313 camping once a month from September through May and then spend a week during the summer camping. A gathering of 25 Scouts can be a boisterous, unruly group, but Lumsden has seen for himself how Scouting has helped boys mature into responsible young men. Lumsden points to how, through camping, Scouting teaches its youth to plan, to be self-reliant and work as a team to get things done.
“I feel that the Scouting organization helps make our youth into our future leaders,” says Lumsden. “Scouting instills high moral principles, self-reliance and responsibility for others and their community. Most Scouts elect to do multiple community projects throughout the year—year after year—while in Scouts. And I have observed this transcend beyond their years in Scouting to when they become adults.”
In keeping with the times, Lumsden says that Troop 313 is starting a Scout troop for girls and will continue to grow their Cub Scout pack.
Lumsden estimates he volunteered 800 hours last year for the troop.
“It boils down to a feeling of responsibility for my community and the desire to see my sons and Scouts have this responsibility as well,” says Lumsden. “It makes me very proud to see the Scouts go out and contribute and see their own feeling of pride for a job well done.”
