LDS youth to stay outdoors despite split with Boy Scouts

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints says a new youth program it will roll out in 2020 when it cuts ties with Boy Scouts of America will still include outdoor and adventure activities even as the initiative becomes gospel-focused.

The Church provided a few additional details about the program in a news release Friday.

President M. Russell Ballard recently emphasized the need to find new ways to bless the children and youth of the Church.

“We have been considering for many years how we can best meet the needs of a worldwide Church. Our children and youth in every part of the world are so precious to us. We have a deep desire to help them strengthen faith in the Savior Jesus Christ and feel of His love,” President Ballard said.

Sister Bonnie H. Cordon, Young Women general president, said “the happiest Individuals are those who engage socially and spiritually in ways which positively build others by also building themselves.”

The Church announced in May it was leaving the Boy Scouts of America at the end of next year in a move that ends a nearly century-old relationship between two organizations originally brought together by shared values that diverged in recent years.

The Boy Scouts decided in 2015 to allow gay troop leaders and announced last year it would allow girls in its ranks.