ESCANABA — This fall, Cub Scout Packs in the area are welcoming new families to join, and for the first time ever, Cub Scout enrollment welcomes both boys and girls, kindergarten through fifth grade, to the program.

Local packs are inviting all families to attend one of their join nights in Delta County to learn more about the program, get their questions answered, and register their sons and/or daughters for Cub Scouts. Local Join Nights are happening at the following dates and locations:

— Pack 3411: Escanaba at Immanuel Lutheran Church, 600 S. Lincoln Rd., on Tuesday, Sept. 11 at 6 p.m.

— Pack 3414: Escanaba at Holy Name Catholic School on Monday, Sept. 10 at 6 p.m.

— Pack 3471: Gladstone at Jones Elementary School on Thursday, Sept. 13 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Girls started to join Cub Scouts last spring. Cub Scout dad and leader Mike VanHandel says, “Our daughter joined the pack. She gets so excited about it and it’s fun to watch her doing the things that we haven’t been able to find the equivalent opportunity elsewhere.”

Ian Schiesl, Cub Scout dad, adds “My daughter joined scouting this year. She’s been having a blast and learning all sorts of things that she’s never had the opportunity to do before: snowshoeing, [using] tools, and just overall good character building.”

Parents can also visit BeAScout.org for more information and resources to learn more about Scouting and its programs, the benefits and experience.

The Boy Scouts of America provides the nation’s foremost youth program of character development and values-based leadership training, which helps young people be “Prepared. For Life.” The Scouting organization is composed of nearly 2.3 million youth members between the ages of 5 and 21 and approximately 960,000 volunteers in local councils throughout the United States and its territories. For more information on the Boy Scouts of America, please visit www.scouting.org.