AREA WIDE UNITED WAY CONTINUES TO SUPPORT BOY SCOUTS

CAPE GIRARDEAU -- The Area Wide United Way in Cape Girardeau will continue to fund the local council of the Boy Scouts of America, Executive Director Nancy Jernigan announced Wednesday.

On June 28, the United States Supreme Court ruled that the Boy Scouts of America is a private organization and not a public entity.

The ruling allows the Boy Scouts the right to set certain rules for membership. Since the ruling, a handful of United Ways in the United States reviewed their anti-discrimination policies and, consequently, withdrew funding of Boy Scout councils.

"Our support of the Boy Scouts was never in question," Jernigan said. "We want our local contributors to be assured that our relationship with the Boy Scouts in our community is unchanged, as supportive as ever."

The position of the Area Wide United Way is one of respect for each agency's right to pursue its own principles and values within the boundaries of the law. The United Way of America does not dictate policy or funding decisions to local United Ways except to the extent that funding decisions must be consistent with applicable law. Each United Way member organization is a private and separate entity, free to develop its own criteria for funding and membership.

"The Boy Scouts and the Area Wide United Way have enjoyed a long and mutually beneficial relationship," said Terry Schwarck, Scout executive of the Greater St. Louis Area Council, Boy Scouts of America, which serves Southeast Missouri. "Our Scout families and volunteers have always supported the overall mission of the Area Wide United Way. We look forward to continuing the important work of providing beneficial programs to the children of Southeast Missouri."

The Boy Scout council is one of 30 agencies that will be funded with contributions from the 2000 campaign that kicked off Aug. 31.