Navigators USA was founded by a group of volunteers who had previously led Boy Scout Troop 103 in East Harlem, serving children in need. Troop 103 was sponsored by The All Souls Unitarian Church in New York City, which covered all expenses. The decision by the Boy Scouts of America to enforce policies that many considered exclusionary caused the All Souls congregation to terminate its charter and
severed ties with the Boy Scouts of America. Yet the congregation still wanted to maintain the best parts of the scouting experience and retain the close relationships and bonding with the youth participants that had developed over the years. The volunteers felt it critical to offer choices within the scouting community, even if it required the creation of a new organization – thus was planted the seed of the group that has since become Navigators USA. The Navigators USA is committed to providing a quality scouting experience that is inclusive and available to all children and families regardless of gender, race, religion, economic status, sexual orientation and social background. The Navigator Moral Compass says it all and demonstrates the founding group’s dream of creating a scouting organization that meets the needs of youths, parents, guardians and other adult caregivers well into the twenty-first century.
