Scouting in

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

was introduced in the 1920s, and has been serving both boys and girls in the island since then.

Scouting America Scouting America is the largest scouting organization and one of the largest List of youth organizations, youth organizations in the United States, with over 1 million youth, including nearly 200,000 female participants. Founded as the Boy Sco ...

serves both boys and girls in different programs, while the

Girl Scouts of the USA Girl Scouts of the United States of America (GSUSA), commonly referred to as Girl Scouts, is a youth organization for girls in the United States and American girls living abroad. It was founded by Juliette Gordon Low in 1912, a year after she ...

serves only girls in various levels.

Scouting America Puerto Rico Council

Puerto Rico Council

The Puerto Rico Council () was founded in 1927 as the ''Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands Council'', part of the Northeast Region of

. The Virgin Islands District was separated into the Virgin Islands Council in 1965. But it was absolved by the

National Capital Area Council The National Capital Area Council (NCAC) is a local council of the Scouting America within the Northeast Region that serves the Washington metropolitan area, including Washington, D.C., portions of Maryland and Virginia, and the U.S. Virgin Is ...

in 2013, restoring the Virgin Islands District again. Thousands of youth and volunteers participate in its four main programs;

Cub Scouts Cubs or Wolf Cubs are programs associated with some Scouting, Scout organizations, for young children, usually between 8 and 12, who are too young to be Scouts and make the Scout Promise. A participant in the program is called a Cub and a gro ...

Scouts BSA Scouts BSA (known as Boy Scouts until 2019) is the flagship program and membership level of Scouting America Scouting America is the largest scouting organization and one of the largest List of youth organizations, youth organizations i ...

Venturing Venturing is a core program of Scouting America for coeducational teenagers and young adults ages 14 (or 13 and graduated the eighth grade) through 20. It is one of Scouting America's three programs for older youth, the others being Sea Scouts and ...

and

Sea Scouts Sea Scouts are a part of the Scout movement, with a particular emphasis on boating and other water-based activities on the sea, rivers or lakes (canoeing, rafting, scuba, sailboarding). Sea Scouts can provide a chance to sail, cruise on boats, ...

. Their mission is to prepare the youth in making correct choices ethically and morally for their future by learning the Scout Law and Scout Promise. According to a statistics report by Scouting Magazine, Puerto Rico had 189 Scouts to reach

Eagle Scout Eagle Scout is the highest rank attainable in the Scouts BSA program of Scouting America. Since its inception in 1911, only four percent of Scouts have earned this rank after a lengthy review process. The Eagle Scout rank has been earned by over ...

s in 2016 and 128 in 2017.

Organization

The Puerto Rico Council is divided into six districts, all named based on the

Taíno The Taíno are the Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean, Indigenous peoples of the Greater Antilles and surrounding islands. At the time of European contact in the late 15th century, they were the principal inhabitants of most of what is now The ...

name of each of the districts' base area: * Arasibo District, based in

Arecibo Arecibo (; ) is a Arecibo barrio-pueblo, city and Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality on the northern coast of Puerto Rico, on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, located north of Utuado, Puerto Rico, Utuado and Ciales, Puerto Rico, Ciale ...

, covers the northern and central area of Puerto Rico, from Quebradillas to Vega Baja. * Borinquén District, based in

Caguas Caguas (, ) is a city and municipality in central eastern Puerto Rico. Located in the eponymous Caguas Valley between the Sierra de Cayey and Sierra de Luquillo of the Central Mountain Range, it is bordered by San Juan and Trujillo Alto to ...

, covers the eastern area of Puerto Rico, from

Aibonito Aibonito () is a small mountain town and municipality in Puerto Rico located in the Sierra de Cayey mountain range, north of Salinas; south of Barranquitas and Comerío; east of Coamo; and west of Cidra, and Cayey. Aibonito is spread over 8 ...

Ceiba ''Ceiba'' is a genus of trees in the family Malvaceae, native to Tropics, tropical and Subtropics, subtropical areas of the Americas (from Mexico and the Caribbean to northern Argentina) and tropical West Africa. Some species can grow to tall ...

. * Caribe District, based in Ponce, covers the southern area of Puerto Rico from

Yauco Yauco () is a town and municipality in southern Puerto Rico. Although the downtown is inland, the municipality stretches to a southern coast facing the Caribbean Sea. Yauco is located south of Maricao, Lares and Adjuntas; east of Sabana Grande ...

to Patillas. * Guaitiao District, based in

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John (disambiguation), Saint John, most commonly refers to: * San Juan, Puerto Rico * San Juan, Argentina * San Juan, Metro Manila, a highly urbanized city in the Philippines San Juan may also refer to: Places Arge ...

, covers the northeastern area of Puerto Rico, from

Guaynabo Guaynabo (, ) is a city and municipality on the northeastern coastal plain of Puerto Rico. Located west of the capital San Juan, east of Bayamón, south of Cataño and San Juan Bay, and north of Aguas Buenas, Guaynabo is spread over 9 barrio ...

Luquillo Luquillo () is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the northeast coast, northwest of Fajardo; and east of Rio Grande. Luquillo is spread over 5 barrios and Luquillo Pueblo (the downtown area and the administrative center of the ci ...

. * Majagua District, based in Bayamón covers the north-northeastern area of Puerto Rico from

Vega Alta Vega Alta () is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico. Vega Alta is on the northern coast of the island, north of Morovis and Corozal; east of Vega Baja; and west of Dorado with an area of . Vega Alta is subdivided into seven barrios and Ve ...

to Bayamón. * Yagüeka District, based in Mayagüez, covers the western area of Puerto Rico, from

Isabela Isabela may refer to: People with the given name * Isabela Boscov, Brazilian film critic * Isabela Corona (1913–1993), Mexican actress * Isabela Garcia (born 1967), Brazilian actress * Isabela Moraes (born 1980), Brazilian synchronized swimmer ...

to Sabana Grande.

Ideals

Puerto Rico is one of the few councils of the Scouting America organization that uses

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

as its main language for all programs, including the Scout Promise and Law.

Scout Promise

English: ''On my honor, I will do my best, to do my duty, to God and my country, and to obey the Scout Law, to help other people at all times, to keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight''. Spanish: ''Por mi honor, prometo hacer todo lo posible, para cumplir con mis deberes para con Dios y mi patria, obedecer la Ley del escucha, ayudar a mis semejantes en toda ocasión, mantenerme físicamente fuerte, mentalmente alerta y moralmente recto''.

Scout Law

A Scout is: – ''Un Escucha es'': * Trustworthy – ''Honrado'' * Loyal – ''Leal'' * Helpful – ''Servicial'' * Friendly – ''Amigable'' * Courteous – ''Cortés'' * Kind – ''Bondadoso'' * Obedient – ''Obediente'' * Cheerful – ''Alegre'' * Thrifty – ''Ahorrativo'' * Brave – ''Valiente'' * Clean – ''Limpio'' * Reverent – ''Reverente''

Guajataka Scout Reservation

Guajataka Scout Reservation or Camp Guajataka, often simply referred to as Guajataka and nicknamed Santuario de Amistad (), is the Puerto Rico Council's only

scout camp A Scout camp (also known as a Scout Centre, or a Scout Park) is a youth center, hostel, facility or campsite. They can be found both in nature and in urban environments. Scout parks are run by youth Scouts, and Scout leaders, generally on a volu ...

reservation. The camp is located at the northwest part of the island in

San Sebastián San Sebastián, officially known by the bilingual name Donostia / San Sebastián (, ), is a city and municipality located in the Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. It lies on the coast of the Bay of Biscay, from the France–Spain border ...

and partially borders the southern portion of

Guajataca Lake Guajataca Lake, or Lago Guajataca, is a reservoir of the Guajataca River created by the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority in 1929. It is located between the municipalities of San Sebastián, Quebradillas, and Isabela in Puerto Rico, and ...

, from which the camp takes part of its name.

Order of the Arrow

Yokahu Lodge 506 is the

Order of the Arrow The Order of the Arrow (OA) is the honor society of Scouting America, composed of Scouts and Scouters who best exemplify the Scout Promise, Scout Oath and Scout Law, Law in their daily lives as elected by their peers. It was founded as a camp fr ...

Lodge of the Puerto Rico Council, founded in 1954 by Luis Matías Ferrer and Dr. Frank H. Wadsworth.

Girl Scouts of the USA in Puerto Rico

Caribe Girl Scout Council

Girl Scouting in Puerto Rico is administered by the ''Caribe Girl Scout Council'' of the

. It is headquartered in San Juan. The first troop was formed in 1926 in Cabo Rojo by

Elisa Colberg Elisa Colberg (March 13, 1905 – 1986) was the founder of the Puerto Rican Girl Scouts, the first troop of which formed in 1926 in Cabo Rojo, aptly named Hijas de Betances. She continued as head of the Girl Scout organisation in Puerto Rico fo ...

. The Council owns Camp Elisa Colberg, established in 1948, in

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( or ) in the United States or the Río Bravo (del Norte) in Mexico (), also known as Tó Ba'áadi in Navajo language, Navajo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the Southwestern United States a ...

, Camp María Emilia in Añasco and Camp Provi Biaggi in Ponce. The

translation of Girl Scout is ''Niña Escucha'' but it is also widely understood and used in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

in Puerto Rico. The council's newsletter is called ''Niña Escucha''. Girl Scouts earn a uniquely designed badge created by the council called ''Los Faros de Puerto Rico'' (The Lighthouses of Puerto Rico). In 2006, painter Moisés Fragela donated one of his paintings entitled ''Quedo en Nada'' (''Left in Nothing'') to the Caribe Council which was sold in auction for funding part of the renovations and improvements towards the council's campsites. In 2017, shortly after

Hurricane Maria Hurricane Maria was an extremely powerful and devastating tropical cyclone that affected the northeastern Caribbean in September 2017, particularly in the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, which accounted for 2,975 of the 3,059 deaths. It is the ...

, 2,000 new members joined the Caribe Council.

Gallery

Review of reviews and world's work (1890) (14587179728).jpg, Boy Scouts of Porto Rico () Scouts in Puerto Rico 2.jpg, Scouts working on a service project For your safety, driving in Puerto Rico sign.jpg, Eagle Project by Richard Morrow, safe driving tips sign for Puerto Rico's mountainous road(s) Scouts in Puerto Rico.jpg, Scouts of the Boy Scouts program attend the opening of the Caribbean

National Wildlife Refuge The National Wildlife Refuge System (NWRS) is a system of protected areas of the United States managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), an agency within the United States Department of the Interior, Department of the Interi ...

Complex and Caribbean Ecological Service Field Office in Boquerón

Notes

References

External links

Puerto Rico Council Facebook

Girl Scouts of Caribe

Concilio de Puerto Rico de Scouting America
{{DEFAULTSORT:Scouting In Puerto Rico Northeast Region (Boy Scouts of America) Organizations based in Puerto Rico