Solomon Goodwin of Columbia in Washington, DC On February 12, 2011, Solomon Goodwin, a seventh grade student at W. G. Sanders Middle School and member of Boy Scout of Troop 330 joined a group of eight other Scouts in Washington, DC, to deliver the 2010 Boy Scouts of America ( BSA) Report to the Nation. This report records the Boy Scouts of America’s achievement in its milestone 100th anniversary year.

“ For 100 years, the BSA has worked to teach young Americans the importance of doing their duty to their country,” Chief Scout executive Bob Mazzuca said. “This delegation of young people and report present a great opportunity to discuss the significant and positive impact we’ve had on young Americans, families, and communities, but also to identify how we can continue this tradition of service and leadership well into our next century.” The 2010 Report to the Nation was presented to Speaker of the House, John Boehner by the delegation of Boy Scouts.

Delegates for the 2010 Report to the Nation, Boy Scouts of America deliver the official 2010 Report to the Nation to Speaker of the House John Boehner. From left: Vanya Keyes, Tony Hansberry, Kevin Garcia, Angel Cabanilla, Soloman Goodwin, Rep. Boehner, Jonathan Hillis, Vasant Bhardwaj, Jennifer Lowe, and Jace Taliaferro. Each member of the delegation represented one of the ranks of achievement in the Boy Scout program. Goodwin represented all of the Boy Scouts in the nation in the 1st class rank. According to Goodwin, one of the highlights of the trip was presenting the Campership to President Barack Obama. The Campership is a scholarship for an individual who may not have the money to attend Boy Scout camp. It was presented to President Obama to award to a deserving scout in his region.

Goodwin said another favorite part of the visit was touring the Pentagon and meeting the Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates, who himself is an Eagle Scout. Goodwin also described the visits to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington Cemetery and President Kennedy’s Memorial. He says, “I’ve learned more from this trip about the government, about Washington DC, and how the government and armed forces are run.” He says that because of this trip, “I may decide to be in the Marines one day.”

The delegation pauses in the office of Secretary of Defense Robert Gates. Secretary Gates has a bit of Scouting history himself; he is a recipient of the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award. Being selected to the Report to the Nation delegation is a tremendous honor for the Scouts and the communities they represent. Each Scout represents the more than 100 million Boy Scouts who have come before them and the millions who will follow. The Boys Scouts of America prepares young people for life by providing the nation’s foremost youth program of character development and values–based leadership training. The Scouting organization is composed of 2.7 million youth members between the ages of seven and 21, and more than a million volunteers, in nearly 300 local councils throughout the United States and its territories. For more information on the Boy Scouts of America, visit www.scouting.org.

Chief Scout Executive Robert Mazzuca, center, pauses with the delegates at their stop at the Lincoln Memorial, just one day after the 202nd anniversary of the president's birth.

As he leads the delegation on a tour of Goddard Space Flight Center, longtime Scouter and NASA engineer Thomas Wallace, right, explains how NASA uses this huge, cylindrical room for testing spacecraft. Solomon Goodwin gets a fascinating look at what goes into getting off the Earth and into the atmosphere.

Fully engaged with their behind–the–scenes tour of the American Museum of Natural History, delegates Angel Cabanilla, Solomon Goodwin, and Jace Taliaferro listen and learn, taking advantage of this once–in–a–lifetime opportunity.