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Bring your sunscreen, your boogie shoes and come party with the e-tour! We are happy to join our outfitting partner Chaco at Music On The Mountaintop 2011 for a gathering of music, camping, and positive vibes. This is a special festival for us, knowing that a percentage of the proceeds will go to protecting the…
Our Court of Honor was last Sunday and we honored many Scouts and Scouters and at one point we honored a 8+ volunteer who is leaving the Troop and I said some words about her...I got some feedback from many in the Troop about it...so here it is as best as I can remember it…
Ok.. so fair warning.. I am going to rant in this post. I know that I try to keep this blog positive.. but this is something that I must get off my chest. Why you may be asking? Well its because what I am about rant about is a fundamental part of Scoutmastership.
Leave What You Find is the 4 th of 7 Leave No Trace Priciples . The principle Leave What You Find definitely has more of an ethical backbone to it than the other principles; therefore it is harder to interpret. Leave No Trace is, in part, about leaving the gift of discovery for the next person.
This month I am featuring posts related to cycling. Venturers can also receive recognition for their cycling knowledge and ablitiy. Cycling and Mountain Biking is one of the electives for the Venturing Ranger award.
Next week will be my first free Monday night in over six years - no PLC meeting, no troop meeting, no committee meeting, no merit badges or patrols to visit. Now that the new Scoutmaster is trained and guiding the troop, I'm on my own.
In this episode of WBtv, Deputy Chief Scout Executive Wayne Brock chats with the BSA's first-ever chief information officer, Ron Tozzie, on the unique role this position plays in the organization. Have a question or a comment? Please use the "Leave a Comment" feature below to interact with Wayne or Ron.
Long before he won three World Series titles, Pat Gillick received another hard-earned prize: Eagle Scout. Now, 60 years after joining the elite few who earn Scouting's highest honor, Gillick enters another exclusive club: the Baseball Hall of Fame. Last month, the former baseball executive became the first Eagle Scout in Cooperstown.
Announcing the GRAND PRIZE winner of the Campsite Challenge! It was another successful weekend promoting sustainable festivation with our good friends at Planet Bluegrass . Planet Bluegrass is 'committed to producing the finest musical experiences in exquisite natural venues in the most sustainable manner possible', and the Rocky Mountain Folks Fest in Lyons, CO was no…
You've only got One Life, so get outside and play with all your heart! The e-tour spent the weekend at the One Life Wilderness Base Camp in Winnabow, NC. We shared strategies for teaching Leave No Trace with their trip leaders and introduced an enthusiastic group of day campers to the Youth Principles highlighted in…
As committee chair, it's your responsibility to see that the committee supports the troop or pack program by providing those things that the Scoutmaster or Cubmaster needs to be successful. These things can be similar between these two programs (help …
Leave No Trace – Minimizing the spread of invasive species in firewood The Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics has recently implemented new content to address the issue of invasive species being transported in firewood. Most people are aware of the threat invasive species pose on native plants and wildlife.
Volunteers are preparing for biggest open day of its kind for Scouting adults in Scotland.
Summer Camp is now over and its all about the memories, lessons, and fun that we had. In this show I talk with the SPL of my Troop. I must say, he's probably the best guest I have ever had on the show.
It seems to go without saying that we should follow the law. Clearly we aren't going to take our Scout unit out and rob a bank - no matter how dire the fundraising needs!
Did you get your Sept/Oct Scouting magazine yet? Take a look at page 24! We don't always stop at Dairy Queen on our hikes, but we do use gmap-pedometer.com a lot and it works pretty slick. That page is a good indication of what I plan to do for the next few years now that…
On August 15th, Team East and Boston REI hosted a Leave No Trace Backyard Session. Despite monsoonal-like rain, 25 people came out for an evening of networking, training, and socializing. Representatives from many local organization came to the event including the Student Conservation Association (SCA) , MA Audubon Society , American Camp Association of New England , Youth…
The Subaru/Leave No Trace Traveling Trainers, the Leave No Trace e-tour Team, as well as the Leave No Trace Colorado Tour are conducting the following training events across the country in September. For more information about these or to attend, visit their calendars.
Eagle Scouts know to "Be Prepared," but nobody's prepared for this. When a fire started in 18-year-old Reid Vaenuku's house last March, everyone rushed outside to safety. Well, not everyone. One member of the family of nine was still inside - Reid's brother Keio.
This post introduces a new contributor to Scoutmastercg.com; Walter Underwood. You can learn more about Walter by reading his profile . I really like the idea of a regular, brief and focused discussion amongst the adult leadership to air any concerns or ideas; we'll be having one of these discussions in our troop pretty soon!
Queen's Scouts treated to 24 hours of wilderness camping with the Chief Scout on his private island
Troop 664 after the Polar Bear Swim Last week at Summer camp, my SPL and I had the chance to sit in a row-boat together for 1 hour and 12 minutes. During that time we talked about the week, leadership, attitudes, and his future.
As of this morning hurricane Irene is barreling down on us east coast folks and, if the forecast holds, will come through our area as a category 2 hurricane with sustained winds of nearly 100 miles an hour. We're bracing for a fairly long power outage for us; perhaps several days.
Here is a "wheel shaped" snack to go with this month's cycling theme. These are pretty easy to make and would be a good snack for a meeting. Younger Cub Scouts will need some help with these, but they are simple enough that they can do a lot of the recipe themselves.
Design and construction teams are making amazing progress on site at the Summit Bechtel Reserve, and the first "sample" activity is in working order - the Summit's first zip line. Get the full update in the video from the design project leader, Oxo Halo.
The Boy Scouts of Troop 68 spent a week at the Buckskin Camp of Many Point Scout Camp this summer. They had an awesome time at camp. The Buckskin staff was terrific and very helpful. The dining hall staff provided great meals in a friendly atmosphere.
BSA provides den meeting plans for den leader on the Scouting.org website. Meeting 3 completes Wolf Achievement 2 - Your Flag, starts Wolf Achievement 3 - Keep Your Body Healthy, and covers part of the Bowling belt loop.
Black and Yellow Garden Spider Mark and Tara e-tour team
Here comes soccer season again! If you have Cub Scouts who play soccer, they can receive recognition for their efforts. The Cub Scout Academics and Sports program includes a belt loop and pin for soccer.
In 2005, Northern Star council was created by merging Indianhead council and Viking council. There have been many other council mergers over the past decade and the trend to restructure due to economics, member levels, and demographics continues. Knowing what your neighbors are doing is usually a good way to be prepared for change.
Minimize Campfire Impacts is the 5 th of 7 Leave No Trace Principles . If you close your eyes and think about some of your earliest camping experiences, there is a good chance that a campfire is included in your reflection.
Puzzles are a fun way to reinforce concepts with Cub Scouts. This puzzle helps Cub Scouts think about some basic bike safety concepts. It would make a good gathering activity at a pack bicycling activity or a den meeting.
National Trail Days Participation up 10 Percent The American Hiking Society's 19th annual National Trails Day (NTD)celebration June 4 drew a record of more than 330,000 trail enthusiasts, hikers, and volunteers from around the nation to celebrate and promote trails in and around their communities, an increase of 10% over 2010.
Getting scouts to listen to youth leaders and should I delegate Scoutmaster conferences? Subscribe to the Scoutmaster Newsletter Call and leave a voice mail comment or question at (484) 734-0002 Subscribe to the podcast on iTunes Podcast Music Eureka and Coleman Tents On Sale at Campmor!
Nate Stafford isn't your typical 13-year-old. While other kids his age worry about saving up for the next must-have video game, Nate has a loftier goal: saving lives, one bed net at a time. This month, the teenage Boy Scout reached his goal of raising $10,000 to purchase 1,000 life-saving nets.
On my hike this morning, I saw my first goose formation practicing for migration. It's still early, but I guess the cool morning got them thinking it's time to start preparing. They know that they don't just take off one day and head South.
This is my last chance to write Wayne's blog before he gets back, andthis week my thoughts have turned to the magic of Scouting.
Lessons learned during Irene:...
You say to-may-to, I say to-mah-to. You say Venture, I say Venturing. Which is correct? Many times we find ourselves writing about Scouting, either for our own units or for outside purposes. Whether writing a memo to your unit's families, …
An 11 year boy walks into the meeting hall with his mother. He see's a big group of boys joking and laughing, telling stories about summer camp and some of them are frantically getting items signed off in their handbooks.
The winner of the Summer Camp SMMPhoto contest is going to be announced on THURSDAY! I have received a lot of pictures and I thank everyone for sending them in. They all tell a great story about the summer camp experience! Check the Blog on Thursday for the winner! Have a Great Scouting Day!
BSA has a list of bike safety guidelines on the Scouting.org site. The guidelines and procedures apply to all BSA unit, council, and national program activities involving bicycling.
You rely on Scouting for relevant information to help you better serve Scouts. Now, you can find this same advice and much more on the Web, at the redesigned and easy-to-navigate scoutingmagazine.org . Whether it's up-to-date policy information, guides to advancement, outdoor advice, and more, you'll find that scoutingmagazine.org goes beyond the magazine pages to offer…
Leave No Trace would like to recognize the following partners for their new and renewing support this month. Please take some time to check them out! Corporate Partners: Cascade Designs Eddie Bauer / First Ascent Leki USA Outdoor Research Arizona Raft Adventures / Grand Canyon Discovery, Inc.
Scottish Explorer Scouts joined in the Edinburgh Festival fun at the latest annual national camp last weekend.
If you follow The Buckets comic strip you know that the youngest member of the household, Eddie, is a Cub Scout, and his father is a Pack leader. A few times a year Greg Cravens, the creator of the strip, uses his comic to share a humorous look at the world of Cub Scouting.
If you go to the Northern Tier homepage at ntier.org you are redirected to http://www.scouting.org/northerntier.aspx Now, Northern Tier, Philmont, and Sea Base all have similar sites - but I bet Sea Base will be redone soon to match the other two more closely.
Calling Andrew Skurka a long distance backpacker isn't really fair – how about incredibly, unthinkably long distance backpacker? Andrew caught the bug for backpacking after completing his first (and probably shortest) long distance hike of the Appalachian trail. He tells it better than I in the talk above: an inspiring and fascinating story.
Scouts and volunteers across the country are being encouraged to create service opportunities from September 1-10 to remember the tragedy and heroism of 9/11 as part of Scout Surge 9/11 . Promote the activity, but let each district, troop, or crew make it as big and exciting as they want.
Think all the fun at the Summit Bechtel Reserve is just for Scouts? Not quite! Two years remain until the Summit opens its doors for the 2013 National Scout Jamboree , and as the excitement builds, so does the adventure. With construction happening pretty much around the clock, three sample activities for visitors are completed: a…
Click to open August issue The August issue of Supply Line is out, featuring stories on a range of new products that are available from the Supply Group such as Scout Surge 9/11 patches, Cub Scout rank T-shirts, Summit gear, and more.
The official launch of the Chess merit badge is Sept. 10! Several special appearances and activities have been planned for the launch event in St. Louis , including a visit by Eagle Scout and NASA astronaut Greg Chamitoff , a human chess match with Scouts acting as the pieces on a giant board, and possibly an appearance…
Click to open Sept. issue The September issue of Learning For Life and Exploring Today has been published and is available at learningforlife.org . The issue's lead story highlights working with school districts to address concerns they may have regarding the investments of time and money that the Learning For Life program requires.
Does it seem as though every Scout and Scouter has a smartphone? Despite what it looks like in the mall or at some troop meetings, a 2010 study (Project Tomorrow's Speak Up 2010) revealed that only 36 percent of Boy Scout-age students have a smartphone.
All councils are encouraged to update their employee handbooks. The new Local Council Employee Handbook Guidelines are available on MyBSA > Resources. Only Scout executives currently have access to the Local Council Employee Handbook Guidelines on MyBSA. For those who don't have access but are responsible for making changes to the handbook, the Scout executive can…
To reach all markets, you must understand those you currently serve as well as those who are underserved so you can provide each market segment with targeted information to empower your communication. The Council Market Analysis (on MyBSA under the Resources tab) can provide you with information about members you currently serve as well as…
A number of resources have either been created or recently updated by the Membership Recruitment Team to help your local recruiting efforts, including the following: 'Delivery System Manual Cub Scout Program: Year A' (English and Spanish) Deliver the promise. This manual consists of the traditional Cub Scout program and can be delivered by volunteers or…
Click to open Sept. 1 issue The Sept. 1 issue of the FID e-Letter has been published and is available on the Finance Impact website. By now, most of you should have reached your 2011 FOS campaign goals and started planning for the 2012 campaign season.
Respect Wildlife is the 6 th of 7 Leave No Trace Principles . Humans can unknowingly cause distress to animals by exhibiting the following behaviors: cutting trail switch backs, getting too close, leaving behind food and trash, and being too loud (except in bear/mountain lion country).
Learning how to express ideas is important for people of all ages. Cub Scouts can practice storytelling, writing, and presentation skills by working on the Communicating belt loop from the Cub Scout Academics and Sports Program.
We know there are 2 years left until the Summit Bechtel Reserve opens its doors for the 2013 National Scout Jamboree. That's why we wanted to give you a little taste of what you can expect, just to hold you over.
New Content for Boy Scouts
Thank you for responding to the last "Situation" in August's eNews. The Situation: You are taking a group of kids on their first camping trip. All summer, they've been excited about sitting around a campfire, telling ghost stories and having s'mores.
Just a quick reminder that today's the last chance to enter to win the monthly prizes - $25 Scout Shop gift card or $50 Class B coupon. Tomorrow morning, two random winners will be selected, maybe it will be you. In other exciting news, I got three volunteers to help with next month's Intro to Outdoor…
