ABC News reports that though four Boy Scouts lost their lives in an EF3 tornado that hit an Iowa camp, the other 89 put their first-aid and emergency management training to use.

What is emerging from the catastrophe are tales of a ferocious twister that left the camp in ruins, as well as the heroism of the scouts, who lived up to their motto “Be prepared.” Iowa Gov. Chet Culver toured the remains of the camp and was briefed on the casualties.

He told “Good Morning America” that “the young men that survived were the real heroes. Amazing stories of them using their own techniques they had learned helping the people who were injured and as the governor of Iowa, I’m very proud of those young men.”

At a news conference later this morning, Culver said their first aid “literally saved lives” while they waited for emergency services to reach them.

Can we stick one in the ear of theodicy, or the use of bad things as evidence that God doesn’t exist? How can we find out what we’re made of, and how can we help people, if people don’t face adversity? There were a whole lot of worse things these boys could have done besides set up a triage unit before rescuers could arrive. How fortuitous was it that these boys had emergency management training the day before the storm hit? How is that not God serving man through vocation?

Secondly, there are those who view the Boy Scouts as paramilitary hatemongers who don’t even deserve the opportunity to lease unused public facilities for the same price as other nonprofits. Could we please lay off a group that does this kind of good?