A Scouter’s View of 2011

From the beginning this blog has held two roles. One has been as a resource to share ideas with parents and fellow Scout leaders. The other role has been as a diary of my own reflections of events gone by. According to WordPress this blog was viewed about 11,000 times in 2011. I certainly appreciate all the eyeballs, and especially those that have joined the conversation. As I look back at 2011, here are some of my favorite posts from the past year and the memories behind them.

☆ When I was in grammar school I would regularly walk from school to the town library. Besides all the great books of horror and adventure I enjoyed their collection of Boys Life magazines. In 2011 nearly the entire history of Boys Life publications became available online via Google Books.

☆ In 2011 I participated in 100 Days of Scouting for the second year in a row. I’m not sure if I’ll be participating this year. If I do it may be more of a Reader’s Digest version.

☆ In 2011 I officially took over as Scoutmaster of Troop 83 and gave my first Scoutmaster’s Minute.

☆ The troop welcomed its first crossovers from the pack I was formerly Cubmaster for. The Phoenix Patrol literally rising from the ashes began to take form.

☆ We had our first campout of the year on the grounds of Friday the 13th including a hike that would make Bear Grylls proud.

☆ Probably my favorite post of the year was one about the bravery of a Polish Scout many years ago.

☆ 2011 also began my career as a volunteer with ShelterBox which led me to many a different day in green socks.

☆ I got to experience my first summer camp as a Scoutmaster.

☆ The ShelterBox Scouting connection couldn’t be any more evident then Operation Cranford which was followed by Hurricane Irene.

☆ A recurring theme was the purple patch and the world brotherhood of Scouting.

☆ It wasn’t all a happy roads though and more than once I thought about throwing in the towel.

☆ My 15 minutes in the limelight moment was definitely appearing as a guest on the ScoutmasterCG podcast.

☆ As with many a new Scoutmaster I often wondered what would Green Bar Bill do?

☆ Throughout my travels I found my iPad to be a useful companion.

☆ Whether via iPad or iPhone there were plenty of Scouting apps to help me along.

☆ My best training experience was definitely attending ShelterBox Ambassador Field Training.

☆ The most popular resource post came as a result of a District request to create a Google Sites BSA template for Council and unit websites.

And that my friends was 2011. So what’s next for 2012? I’m looking forward to the troop growing and God willing my application for ShelterBox response team keeps moving forward. Good luck to all in your adventures.

 

The Importance of Service

The holidays are upon us which as for many makes this a very busy time, and which also means less time to post. December is the one month of the year our troop takes a break from camping. Our Troop does an annual fundraiser selling Christmas trees and wreaths and that monopolizes all the weekends available, but it helps fund our Scout program for the next 11 months.
One night during the sale one of the Scouts parents approached me as they’d recently heard that about a woman who had just moved in with her sister in town. As I was told (and never asked for any more detail,) he woman had just moved with her four children to escape an abusive relationship. All they had was the clothes on their backs. Her sister (who has two kids of her own) was the only place she had to turn. The parent asked if I could spread the word in the Troop in case there was anything anyone could do to help out. I promised I would do a lot more than that.
Service is one the tenets that separates Scouting from many of the other extracurricular activities kids have to chose from. From our roots BP sought to instill good will in the young men that he guided.

“The good turn will educate the boy out of the groove of selfishness.”

As Scouts and Scouters we have many opportunities for service. Some times that may just be getting a job done (for free) that just needs to be done. The most impacting service opportunities for me are the rare ones where you get a chance to see the impact your service has made first hand.
We spread the word among the Scouts… and and the Cub Scouts, and the parish, and friends, and families and even one very generous employer. One of the Scouts brought it to his own school’s youth service group and rallied them. (He’d make an awesome patrol leader if we could get him out camping with us).
This past Thursday we put all the racks away from the tree sale and then got to deliver everything that had been donated for this family. Let’s just say multiple large vehicles were required to get the gifts and the Scouts over there. The sister was grateful to tears. What her sister was going through I wouldn’t wish on anybody. But to have to go through it with the children at Christmas was even worse.
I know I’ve got some really nice Christmas presents coming this year but it’s gonna be tough to beat the feeling of being able to help a family when they really needed it.

 

Free BSA Websites Using Google Sites

The first step in getting a freely hosted Troop website is to go to Google Sites. You will need a gmail address to sign in. If you don’t have a gmail address there’s a link at the top to register for a new account. Even if you already have a gmail account I suggest setting a new one up as the Troop web identity (i.e. troopxyzwebmaster@gmail.com). When you get to the stages of setting up calendars or photo galleries you’ll see why a dedicated account makes it easier.

Once you’re logged in click on CREATE.

Click on Browse the gallery for more

Search for BSA

Select the BSA Unit Template theme

After you preview the template, in the top menu bar click Use this template

To customize YOUR new Troop site click the pencil looking icon and that will put the page into edit mode.

Here you can customize the calendar details, leading photo, and Troop News feeds. You can use the Google Calendar of the account you created the site with as the Troops Calendar. (Same applies for Picasa for photos). Click on any of the page links on the left and edit as appropriate for your Troop.

Customizing the header graphic:

You’ll also want to customize the header graphic for your unit. The ugly but effective solution is:
☑ Download the PowerPoint slide here: (DropBox)
☑ On the title page modify to the text to suit your unit
☑ “Save As Picture”
☑ Crop
☑ Replace the existing header graphic by going to MORE, Manage Site, Site Layout.

 

It’s a Contest

I’d like to make mention of two contests that might appeal to you or your Scout units. You have until this weekend to get an entry in for the first one.

Coleman “Continue Exploring” Contest 

If you are a non-profit organization and are in need of new camping gear, then look no further! Today, Coleman, a leader in the outdoor industry, is officially announcing the launch of the Coleman “Continue Exploring” Contest where one Grand Prize winner will receive up to $5,000 in Coleman camping equipment for their organization! 

The contest is open to non-profit organizations whose mission is to teach children, 18 and under, about the great outdoors and participate in group camping activities.  

Participants can enter by visiting the Coleman Facebook page now through October 31^st. In addition to filling out the online entry form, you must submit one photo of your group in the outdoors as well as what the outdoors means to your group (50 words or less please!).  In addition to the Grand Prize winner, there will be four second prize winners who will each win a prize package consisting of Coleman® camping equipment with a retail value of $2,000. 

Once all the entries have been received, Coleman will select five finalists based on creativity, originality, and their commitment to teaching children about the outdoors.  Then, starting November 5-11, Coleman Facebook fans will vote for the Grand Prize winner so log on and let us know what the great outdoors mean to you.

No purchase is necessary to enter, for official contest rules, please visit www.Facebook.com/colemanusa

Contest 2: Here at A Scouter’s Journey

Submit your favorite camping moment in the comments section of this post. The pseudo-randomly chosen winner will receive a Coleman Micro Quad Lantern. The winner for the lantern will be announced next week.

• 4 Lights in 1 – 4 removable LED light pods, each with its own on/off switch
• Light pods attach to any metal surface
• Each removable light pod is powered by (2) lithium ion rechargeable batteries, which are recharged when attached to the base
• Bright & Efficient – 75 Lumens (Lantern), 20 Lumens (Light pod) ANSI
• Runtime: up to 33 hrs (Lantern), up to 1 hr (Pod)
• Lantern powered by 4AA batteries (not included)
• Customize with (4) colored lens for each light pod stored in base
• Bottom base unscrews to access battery compartment – no tools required
• Area lights have a rubber lanyard for hanging, a clip for attaching to clothing, and a magnet for attaching to steel surfaces

Good Luck!

 

ShelterBox Ambassador Field Training

This weekend I was an attendee at ShelterBox Ambassador Field Training. I’m still processing all I went through but I can say without hesitation that it was one of the best, if not the best training, I’ve ever attended. The weekend was very well balanced between informational sessions, hands-on with the ShelterBox equipment, team development activities and participating in a disaster response scenario from start to finish. I won’t give away too many of the specifics about the training as I would like it to be just as special for future Ambassadors as it was for me. Besides that I think it’s more of a experience to be had, not described.

The attendees were divided into three teams for a weekend long mock deployment as SRT (ShelterBox Response Team) members. As “the Scout guy” in my group I was nominated to be our team leader which personally made the experience even more of a challenge and that much more rewarding. We experienced everything from going through customs in a politically turbulent foreign country to the layout and deployment of tents on the ground. However its really what happened between those points that was where the real magic was. Throughout the weekend our team was challenged, mentally, physically and even emotionally. As it turned out our team wound up being the winners of the weekend’s competition. We were all very proud, though it was hard to believe as we had so much fun during the process.

Honestly I think that everyone who attended “won” as there were so many take-aways that it was impossible to go through it and not come out of it a better Ambassador for ShelterBox. I really can’t thank enough everyone involved in this weekend who made it such an amazing experience: the SRT’s who were our trainers, my fellow Ambassadors especially my teammates, and all the support staff that gave up so much time to make this weekend as vivid of an experience as it was. What an amazing group of volunteers each and every one of them.

Viva Fredonia!