We got to go up to the Fort Huachuca MARS station and my Webelo got to make contact with a number of scouts around the country. (Mississippi and Ohio)

Been thinking about getting my HAM ticket, and I think this, combined with finally purchasing our own home, is the boost I needed to jump in.  My son and I had a great time and really enjoyed ourselves.

Scouts on the Air is a lot of fun. At summer camp last year, one of the staffers had an Elecraft KX3 and was calling all over the country. It helped that we were at 10,400 feet. My two sons both have the radio merit badge. We often take handheld radios (2m and 70 cm) on our week long camps, especially when going to the land of no cell coverage (which is a lot of Utah). 

Get your Tech ticket. Studying for 1-2 hours is enough to get there. But then you'll want to get General Class so you can do some HF calling all over the country, especially at Scout camp. 

I came home and took one of the practice tests online (with just my basic electronics knowledge and applying a little common sense) and was short by one question. A few hours of studying, and I think I'll be confident for Tech. I fully intend to get General, but probably won't at first.

If I may pass on the advice that was given to me, study for the General exam now and take it right after you pass the Tech exam.  It won't cost you anything extra to take the General exam and a lot of the material from both exams overlaps.  I planned to do this but I needed to go home and sleep.  

Our local ham club was out today at a city park on top of a hill operating three stations field day style with the Scouts and Cubs from the whole area coming by.  We had a lot of fun.  Didn't make a lot of contacts, as each contact lasted 20-30 minutes as a bunch of boys got to talk.  I was on solar power and battery to an ICOM 7200 and a BuddiPole and we talked with stations in WA, Canada, Rhode Island  and Oklahoma.  We were on 17m until the band died for us about 1500 local time.

It was a lot of fun and I think we hooked a couple of the boys.

Welcome to the "other" BRD, Black Radio Disease.

There are quite a few hams in AZ on this forum. You'll find

this is the best ham forum on the 'net. Don't be shy asking questions.

Gilly is right, once you score 90% or better on the Tech question pool, study

for General as material over-laps and take both at the test session.

General gives you a lot of HF (shortwave) privileges and this is where all the fun is.

On another note, the VHF/UHF repeater systems in AZ are fantastic

with many on mountain tops giving them great coverage areas.

The Rimlink system will allow you to talk with someone waaaay over in

Pie Town NM while standing down in the valley...on a handheld...using 5 watts....

into a rubber duck antenna.

IIRC you are in southern AZ so the EAARS repeater system is in your AO.

dont stop at General

take the extra test too, after all they give you the questions and answers to study, tests dont get any easier than that.