Boone, eventually merged with the BSA. The BSA's stated purpose at its incorporation in 1910 was "to teach [boys] patriotism, courage, self-reliance, and kindred values." Later, in 1937, Deputy Chief Scout Executive George J. Fisher expressed the BSA's mission: "Each generation as it comes to maturity has no more important duty than that of teaching high ideals and proper behavior to the generation which follows." The current mission statement of the BSA is "to prepare young people to make ethical and moral choices over their lifetimes by instilling in them the values of the Scout Oath and Law." At its peak, Boy Scouts had an active membership of over 4 million youth in 1973. Today, popularity in outdoor events has waned and membership has dropped. However, BSA remains the largest scouting organization and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants and about one million adult volunteers . Federally chartered corporation The BSA holds one of the comparatively rare congressional charters under Title 36 of the United States Code. On behalf of the BSA, Paul Sleman, Colin H. Livingstone, Ernest S. Martin, and James E. West successfully lobbied Congress for a federal charter for the BSA which President Woodrow Wilson signed on June 15, 1916. One of the principal reasons for seeking a congressional charter was to deal with competition from other Scout organizations including the United States Boy Scouts and the Lone Scouts of America. The 1916 statute of incorporation established this institution among a small number of similarly chartered patriotic and national organizations, such as the Girl Scouts, Civil Air Patrol, the American Legion, the Red Cross, Little League Baseball, and the National Academy of Sciences. The federal incorporation was originally construed primarily as an honor; however, it does grant the chartered organization some special privileges and rights, including freedom from antitrust and monopoly regulation and complete control over the organization's symbols and insignia, though it neither implies nor accords Congress any special control over the BSA, which remains free to function independently. Membership Original programs Boy Scouts of America uses four primary programs to achieve its aims in Scouting: Cub Scouting is available to youth from kindergarten through fifth grade. Scouts BSA (formerly Boy Scouts) is the flagship program of the BSA for youth ages 11 to 18; 10-year-olds can join after March 1 of their fifth grade year