LDS Latinos being served by Scouting

When Noel Rios sat out on his front porch last summer to enjoy the evening cool, he'd witness a procession outside his home that left him troubled. Latino teenage boys — many of them immigrants to Brother Rios' Heber City, Utah, community — would pass by each night, wandering up and down his street. The boys appeared to have no structure in their lives and little direction.

They needed Scouting, decided Brother Rios.

At the time, Brother Rios was serving as the president of the Heber 13th (Spanish) Branch of the Heber City Utah Stake. The small branch was made up largely of immigrant families from Mexico and Central and South America and had never sponsored a Scout troop. So Brother Rios filled out the necessary paperwork and, last August, formally organized Troop 1308 of Scouting's Utah National Parks Council. The branch's maiden troop consisted of a single Scout. Brother Rios was the Scoutmaster.

A few months later, Brother Rios was released as branch president — but he insisted on remaining the Scoutmaster. In seven months, the troop has grown from one Scout to about a dozen — including several who are not Church members. Despite limited resources, they have camped together, learned new skills and become friends.

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This story is provided by The LDS Church News, an official publication of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is produced weekly by the Deseret News.