We Own Adventure

Scouting News for the DC Metro Area

Ashante Corey-Bey

18th Annual NCAC Scout Orienteering Meet

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REGISTER: https://scoutingevent.com/082-2023ScoutOrienteering

Join us for NCAC’s  18th Annual Scout Orienteering Meet on Saturday, May 6, 2023, at Kings Landing Park. Test out your troop or crew member’s navigation skills at this exciting map and compass competition. Scouts and Crew members will compete in age groups and different course levels in the morning as individuals. The afternoon event is designed around competing as a unit (Troop or Crew) to gather the greatest score over the other scouting units. This event is open to all Scouts BSA Troops, Venturing Crews, and other appropriately aged Scouting groups; the minimum age for this event is 10 and a half years old.

The morning sessions will include an instruction Orienteering course for Scouts new to the sport, competitions in one of four levels of orienteering courses, and other skill-building competitive events. Each Scout pair will have an opportunity to choose two events in the morning. We strongly recommend instruction take place at a unit level prior to your arrival. The instructional Orienteering course is a “no compete, no awards” hands-on teaching course that your scouts can learn by using the Teaching EDGE method to learn the art of Orienteering. To ensure fairness, competition will also be broken into two age groups for most events in the morning, under 14 years of age and Scouts 14 years of age or older. Venturing Crews with members over 18 years old may be scored as a third grouping based on judging decisions on the day of the event. After a brief break at 1 pm, the afternoon event will be a 90-minute Orienteering score course. The afternoon event is a unit based competition with youth leadership taking charge of their units in planning and directing their teams. The event will be completed with awards from the morning events at 5:00 pm.

The cost is $10 per youth and includes an event patch for all youth participants. Adults may purchase patches at cost on the day of the event pending availability.

This event is run by volunteers from and supported by the NCAC and has the added experience of help from the Quantico Orienteering Club.

 

 

 

National Women’s History Month : NCAC’s Christa Waterwiese

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NCAC would like to take this month to highlight Christa Waterwiese an amazing woman that make our Scouting Program outstanding! She currently serves NCAC as the Senior District Executive for Washington, D.C..

Christa  has been involved in Scouting most of her life and was inspired to pursue a career in Scouting. She shared:
” I was always aware that a career in Scouting was possible, but not what it entailed until college. When I graduated in summer of 2019, I went to spend a final summer as the Aquatics Director of Swift High Adventure Base in the Greater Saint Louis Area Council. That summer, several Scouting professionals came down to camp and took interested staff to a dinner in town to learn about career Scouting. While some folks definitely went for the free (non-camp) meal, there were several that were truly interested in possibility. At the end of the summer, I jetted off to the World Scout Jamboree and then Richmond, VA to move in with my long-term girlfriend. In a brand-new city, I turned to what always brought me comfort: Scouting. I learned of an opening in Heart of Virginia Council through a mentor and applied. The rest is history.”

Christa also recalled volunteers and Scouters that provided guidance in her Scouting Journey.

She stated: “My childhood Council had a strong Venturing program, and I had the fortune to be behind a fantastic cohort of female youth leaders. I was truly inspired by their work and many of them went on to become Regional and National Venturing Officers. A few key members of this group took the time to mentor my growing interest; driving me to meetings all over the city, recommending NYLT and NAYLE, and championing my decisions to run for various District, Council, and Area positions.

Two adults I want to acknowledge are Lisa Abernathy and Jenn Hancock. Lisa was my Camp Director at Swift and whose integrity and work ethic I continuously strive to emulate. Jenn is the type of woman who blazes ahead and looks behind her to bring other women along. Both provided me with valuable lessons, modeled a life lived by the Scout Oath and Law, and generously gave me opportunities based on my potential. I would not be where I am today without these two women.”

When asked what representation  in the world of Scouting means to her, Christa replied:

“Representation means belonging. When you see others like yourself in Scouting, the little voice of imposter ridden concern finally starts to dissipate. To this day, I still look around the room to count the number of female heads. To this day, I still hesitate before mentioning “my wife” in discussions. While I am delighted with the progress Scouting has made (progress I did not think I would see before my future kids were in the program) that does not mean there is not work to be done. If I want to achieve my goal- that every child has the opportunity to join Scouting- I need to ensure that every child knows they are welcome in the program. And that means moving Scouting towards a place where its adult leadership is representative of the US citizenry. Representation means bringing the local community together to champion the future of our young people, a future Scouting can change for the better.”

Please help NCAC honor Christa who continues to make a great impact in our Scouting Community.

 

 

2023 Class of Silver Beavers

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National Capital Area Council, Boy Scouts of America is proud to announce the 2023 Class of Silver Beavers. The Silver Beaver Award is a distinguished service award presented at the local level.

Recipients of this award are adult leaders who have made an impact on the lives of youth both in and out of Scouting. They have given hard work, self-sacrifice, dedication, and many years of service to our community. The members of this year’s class are:

Class Honoree: Rick Rogers

Lola Arjona
Ken Barrett
Scott Bashore
James Emery
Melvin Horne
Wendy Latella
Eugene Lockhart
Bryan Martin Firvida
James Miller
Tim Miller
John Mirvish
Joseph Mortensen
Andrea Schlang
David Seitz
Zohra Sharief
Christopher Smith
David Steinfeld
David Stokes
Mark Verschell
John Wiltenmuth
Jeff Ye

These community leaders will be recognized at the Council Court of Honor on May 13, 2023 at  Camp Synder.

Pack 1513 Innovates at the 2023 Pinewood Derby

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Den leaders and scouting family of Pack 1513 shared with NCAC their Pinewood Derby experience this year:

“We have a visually impaired scout this year, and we didn’t want his sight limitations to impact the excitement and engagement of the pinewood races. In an attempt to address this issue, our Den leaders presented an idea to attempt to add bells for sound at the finish line, hoping to accommodate his needs and to be part of the races.  The bells turned out not to be the most practical. Still, coordinators (Mike Seaton, Joe Cuda, and Tim Maloney) creatively built a stand with wind-chimes suspended after the finish line, allowing the scout and attendees to hear the different notes from the cars as they finished the race. He was able to follow his car’s performance without seeing the races”.

Simple innovations by our scouting family make scout activities accessible for all! Thank you for sharing Pack 1513!

NCAC Wishes Everyone a Happy Pinewood Derby Season!!!!

Webelos Scout Uses Popcorn Sales to Support A Local Animal Hospital

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Callista “Callie” Kellogg is a 9 year old Webelos who loves animals. “I would like to be a veterinarian. My personal zoo includes a black hamster named Pepper, a Rat terrier dog named Nutmeg, and a Maine coon cat named Ginger. I am picking up three chickens next week!” When asked by her parents, Eirik and Talisha Kellogg what cause was near and dear to her heart that she would like to support with her popcorn sales, Callie’s response was no surprise. After some thought, Callie responded that she would like to support animal welfare. Buckeystown Veterinary Hospital in Frederick, MD boards and takes care of their pets and also partners with three animal rescues. Lab Rescue LRCP is one of them.

Callie coordinated with the Lab Rescue LRCP Medical Director, Silvia Banales, and the animal hospital to create an Amazon Wishlist to address their medical needs. It was ordered to be delivered over the holidays. It was a lot of work and conscious scheduling to sell popcorn while also participating in swimming, cheerleading, STEM scouts and Cub Scouts. She belongs to Pack 278, Pack 1775 and STEM lab 4548. Scouting is a family event. Her sisters, Beth and Brooke Kellogg of Troop 3017G, also helped out by driving Callie around town and walking door to door with her. Callie also donated $1000 to the James E. West Fellowship with a gift to the NCAC Endowment Fund using the money she earned from the popcorn sale that went into her scout account. “I want all cub scouts to be able to go to camp. I have gone to camp every year and have enjoyed it very much and would like to share the experience with others who may be less fortunate. I want to make sure scouting remains accessible to all.”

In addition to storefront sales at Lowes and Wawa, Callie’s den leader and dad, Eirik Kellogg, took her door to door to do sales even though we live in they live in a rural part of Frederick County. Callie’s mom, Talisha Kellogg, who volunteered as the unit popcorn co-kernal says “The community in Frederick, MD has been amazing at supporting scouting. Many scouts and their parents in our pack put in the time to sell enough popcorn to fund their entire scouting year. Callie sold almost $28k in popcorn.

 

BSA Troop 706 is a Cut Above in Serving Cub Scouts: Pinewood Derby Cut -Out Day

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Troop 706B, sponsored by Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church in Potomac, Maryland, hosted their annual Pinewood Derby Cut -Out Day on Jan 7.  For over 20 years, the troop has been assisting our next generation of Boy Scouts by offering this fun filled Cub Scout event.  Cub Scouts, along with an adult, started with a safety briefing, then entered the cutting room where they designed their cars, work with the trained T 706 leaders to cut their cars, sanded and then weighted in for accuracy. The many tools, industrial machinery and complex vacuuming system was all provided by the youth and adults leadership of troop.  Together, they helped to cut over 360 cars for the upcoming Pinewood Derby season!