Parents in Denver are complaining after discovering that their children attended a Cub Scouts camp sponsored by Hooters, the restaurant chain known for the revealing outfits worn by its waitresses.
Hooters apparently requested to work with the Scouts and contribute financially to the camp as an official sponsor, and the Boy Scouts of America Denver Area Council gave them the green light to do so. TODAY reached out to both organizations for comment.
Michelle Kettleborough, a parent whose 7-year-old son attended the Frontier District Day Camp, told KMGH-TV she arrived to pick up her son and was flabbergasted to see him surrounded by women wearing Hooters caps.
"I step back for a second and I take a look and I'm like, 'Are they wearing Hooters visors?'" she told the station. "Wait a minute."
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Kettleborough and other parents have told KMGH and other media outlets they don't think that Hooters' philosophy fits with that of the Scouts, which bills itself as “a program for young people that builds character, trains them in the responsibilities of participating citizenship, and develops personal fitness."
"It’s just the philosophies of the two organizations are polar opposites and I just don’t think they should be together," said another less-than-enthused parent, Marsha Corn.
"We love the Scouts, we think they made a very poor choice and what I would like and what I think would go a long way again is some accountability."
In a statement released to the station, the Boy Scouts of America wrote: "A restaurant extended support to help make a local Cub Scout Day Camp possible and provided volunteers for the camp. The group of trained volunteers mistakenly wore the wrong attire and it was addressed by our Council leadership."
But the parents' rage seems to have little to do with the attire of the Hooters employees. Indeed, the women were far from scantily clad when they arrived to help the Scouts, wearing shorts and regular T-shirts, as shown in a Facebook post from Hooters Colorado.
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The Denver restaurant initially took down the Facebook photos, but then reposted them, writing, "We have opted to repost pictures due to a news story that ran this evening that was completely inaccurate! We are disappointed a good deed was portrayed in a poor light.
"This is our attempt to right the situation. We enjoyed volunteering our time and look forward to future events! #Hooters#Proud2GiveBack"
For its part, the youth organization appears to regret the sponsorship decision: "The Boy Scouts of America relies on millions of dedicated volunteers and we are very appreciative of their commitment. We extend our apologies for this mistake and look forward to continuing our mission of serving youth in the Denver area."
Good deed or not, parents are befuddled by the entire situation.
"Quite honestly we're questioning whether we're going to keep him in the organization at all next year," Kettleborough said.