Scouting Saves Lives
Here is a great video from the Last Frontier Council about Scouting. Not sure what more I can say about it. Something to think about if your kids are not involved in Scouting or any other similar organization.
A Scout is Kind
You really get a glimpse into the soul of a Scout occasionally.
We held our Order of the Arrow call-out on Friday night and we had a couple of Scouts in our Troop that were on the ballot but were not elected and were upset. I totally get that as my oldest son was not elected on his first ballot so I completely understand. What was really telling though was one of our Scouts in the Troop was elected and asked me if he could give his election status to one of the Scouts who was not. I explained to him that it was not and there is always next year.
That my friends is what Scouting and the OA are all about. How many times have you seen a 15-yr-old willing to unselfishly give up something that is really important to a lot of people? Not very often.
Makes me proud to be involved in the program!
Boy Scout Mystery Campout
Let me start off by saying that Troop 168 is boy-run and all of the activities are planned by the Scouts. (Well all but this one…)
During our last planning session the Scouts made a decision that they wanted the adults of the Troop to plan a Mystery Campout. They wanted us to completely plan the campout but keep the actual activity and the location a secret. The Scoutmaster agreed and the date was set.
David, who is an Assistant Scoutmaster in the Troop, was assigned the task of coming up with the plan and location and started planning. He decided that we were going to do a Search and Rescue scenario following a recommendation of a Troop Committee member that recently attended the Philmont Leadership Challenge. We decided that use our Council’s summer camp property as the location. The Leadership Scouts in the Troop were brought in on the plan so they could run the scenario and serve as the command center at the base camp.
The older Scouts went through the specifics of the Search & Rescue Merit Badge and how to look for an individual that is lost on Saturday morning. In the afternoon, “victims” were placed all over camp and clues were left that enabled the three search groups to go out and attempt to locate the lost individuals and then administer first aid as necessary. The Scouts were all given radios, maps and GPS units so they could relay their information back to the Incident Command (IC).
While all of this was happening the new Scouts that had just crossed over from Webelos spent the day getting to know one another and their Troop Guides by working on joining requirements in the morning and in the afternoon they worked on their Totin’ Chip and Firem’n Chit. For many this was their first camping experience and from what I could hear they really seemed to enjoy it.
After the SAR time was over everyone came back to camp and started on dinner and the Scouts got to work on their desserts for a Best Dessert Contest. The Scouts had a great time learning a real life skill and as a adults we learned an appreciation for doing the job they do every month. Thanks to everyone who helped make this campout fun.
District-wide Webelos Crossover
About 10 years ago a change was made in our OA Chapter that had our OA Crossover teams going to each Pack and conducting individual crossovers at the Blue & Gold Banquets. For the Arrowmen in our Chapter that meant that we had to visit 10-15 Blue & Gold Banquets and spend lots of time away from our personal lives.
Last year we made the decision to move to a single, district-wide crossover ceremony that would include all of the Packs and Troops in the district. Last weekend our Order of the Arrow Chapter Hosted our first District-wide crossover. We held it at our local Scout camp at the Council Ring and held a short reception after the crossover was complete for the new Boy Scouts and their families.
Overall, I think things went very well. We had 19 Webelos Scouts registered and 15 attended crossing over to 4 different Troops. We had close to 100 people in attendance. The whole thing would not have been possible without the efforts of a lot of people. In particular the Arrowmen of the Kittakima Chapter. Thanks to everyone that played a part in making it a great success. I can’t wait to see this event grow next year!
Eagle Scout
It has been about 24 hours since our son, Drew, completed his final Board of Review for Eagle Scout. Needless to say I am still floating on Cloud 9. Great job Drew! I am very proud of you!
Eagle Project is Complete!
Last weekend I finally got to feel that warm, fuzzy feeling that every Boy Scout parent looks forward to, a complete Eagle project. With football season finally behind us he was able to get things scheduled do the work. Drew tried to complete it in October but there was an event at the camp so we had to reschedule. Thirty eight people from the Troop, Crew and my work in addition to family showed up to help. It only took us about 4 hours and everything was complete. I was very thankful that we had so many people show up and give their time to make it possible. Next up, final Eagle board in December.
Cub Scouts Revisited
We spent a few hours last weekend hanging out with Cub Scout Pack 163. They had their annual Fall Pack Campout and Raingutter Regatta at Camp Sundance near Enid, OK. Recently, they purchased four Dutch ovens and wanted some help making desserts and breakfast for the Pack so they invited us to come and help. Actually, they invited my wife, Suzette, and the kids and myself just tagged along. I spent the day trying to get to know all of the new parents (and there are a lot) and the kids spent the day fishing. We hung around until dinner was finished and then headed home just before the campfire. It was great to see so may smiling faces and hang out with some old and now new friends. I can safely say that Pack 163 is doing great!
Everyone in the kitchen is busy!
Burgers and beans!
BSA to use Scout Oath and Scout Law for all programs
It's official: The resolution to move to one Oath and Law for Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, Varsity, Sea Scouts, and Venturing was approved this morning by the Boy Scouts of America's executive board.
I first told you about the volunteer-led proposal in a blog post in August.
Essentially, this means every Scout of any age will use the Scout Oath and Law instead of reciting separate, program-specific sayings.
Family Camp Staff
This past weekend we served as staff for the John Nichols Family Overnighter for Cub Scouts and their parents. We had a great time despite the rain.
If it ain’t Scottish…
Cameron throwing the hammer
Being the Chairman for Camporee affords me some room to set the format. Traditionally, we have had a Camporee that consisted of games that tested Scouting Skills. For this Camporee we decided that we wanted to do something fun and move away from the Scout Skills so we opted to play Scottish Games.
This last spring we travelled to Kansas to watch a Camporee that was playing Scottish games and see if it was worth trying. Their event drew nearly 800 Scouts and Scouters and the Scouts had a Blast. Based on their success we decided to go forward.
Drew throwing the hammer
We had all of the traditional events including the Caber Toss, Hammer Throw, Battle Axe Throw, Braemar Stone Put, Sheaf Toss, and the Weight Toss. We added a Highland Golf event which was a closest to the pin contest and had judging for the “Clan” attire. That meant that everyone had on kilts and carried Clan Flags.
In the end there was a winner chosen for the small clans and the large clans. The Scouts from Troop 168 won the large Clan Division and our Scouts (and adults) were stoked.
