We Own Adventure

Scouting News for the DC Metro Area

The Scouter Digest Staff

NCAC Celebrates Earth Week with Home Activities

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Take Action | Earth DayIt’s the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day! We are celebrating all week with special activities! NCAC’s Earth Week is brought to you by our Conservation Committee. We will have daily NCACBSA Facebook Live Brown Bag presentations on Boy Scouts of America Hornaday Awards, other Conservation awards, and will have some fun activities. On Earth Day, Scouts will choose a part of the Scout Law and do activities on that theme, sharing pictures and promises on Facebook and will have fun activities all day long.

Don’t miss the William Hornaday Gold Medal talk by NCAC’s very own recipient, Dr. Bill Bowerman! Sign up here to get the ZOOM link: https://www.scoutingevent.com/082-earthday.

Tuesday April 21
12:00 PM Brown Bag – Hornaday Awards – an overview for youth and adults, Will Rodger, NCAC Conservation Committee Chair

Wednesday, April 22 – EARTH DAY!
Watch the NCAC Facebook page for updates, challenges and fun ways to celebrate!
9:00 AM: Facebook Live: Plan Your Earth Day
12:00 PM: Brown Bag – Hornaday Unit Awards, Sarah Holtz & Carol Brown, NCAC Conservation Committee
5:00 PM: Facebook Live: Earth Day Recap
7:00 PM: William T. Hornaday Gold Medal Talk

Thursday, April 23
12:00 NOON Brown Bag – Messengers of Peace Awards, Abdul Rashid Abdulla

Friday, April 24
12:00 NOON Brown Bag – Earning the World Conservation Award, Conservation Good Turn and National Park Service Junior Ranger Award, Sara Holtz, NCAC Conservation Committee

To learn more tune into one or all of our Facebook lives this week at 12pm. Visit Earthday.org to learn more about Earth day activities and more.

Special thank yous to two NCAC STEM Committee members, to the Conservation Committee Chair, Will Rodger, and Conservation Committee Members Sara Holtz, Carol Brown & Abdul Rashid Abdulla for pulling this together!

Troop 996 Organizes ‘Remote’ Food Drive

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When we started social distancing and businesses closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, my family and I thought of something our Troop could do to help others. I started to research food pantries and our Scoutmaster suggested we contact the one supported by our chartering organization, Aldersgate United Methodist Church. So I called Rising Hope and asked if we could do a food drive, and they said yes.

So, we sent out an email about the food drive to the Troop then a few days later my brother, my Mom, and I went to Aldersgate parking lot to wait for Scout families to drive by and drop off food. Then the next day my Mom and I went to Rising Hope and delivered the food.

I felt good about organizing this because the food will be given to people that need it and we live out the Scout Law (Helpful, Kind) even when we can’t have regular Troop meetings. A Scout is HELPFUL and KIND.

Troop 98 Eagle Scout Service Project Creates a New Zen Garden at Duke Ellington School of the Arts

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In January 2020, Stefan Morgan, a Life rank Scout with Scouts BSA Troop 98, chartered by St. Anthony of Padua Church in the Brookland neighborhood of Northeast Washington, DC, led two weekends of work to bring his Eagle Scout Service Project to life.

Stefan oversaw his months of planning and hard work come over two weekends of hard work by a combination of scouts, scouters, students, and neighbors. Together, all of these volunteers executed Stefan’s plans and worked under his leadership to build a new Zen garden on the grounds of the Duke Ellington School of the Arts, part of the District of Columbia Public Schools in Northwest Washington, DC.

The new Zen garden includes two benches, decorative rocks, and sand; and has created a new quiet, calming, and contemplative space for students and neighbors alike to enjoy.

Stefan’s work included all aspects of planning and design of the Zen garden, securing financial support and donations of materials, and planning and coordinating multiple days of work in two different locations.

Thank you to all of the volunteers, scouts and scouters of Troop 98, and congratulations to Stefan on your hard work, and completing this very difficult step on your trek to Eagle!

Troop 35 Scouts “Telecamping” Program – Can’t Keep Good Scouts from Doing!!

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Scoutmaster Kevin Huddleston of Troop 35, Occoquan District, recently earned his Wood Badge Beads as a successful graduate of NCAC’s Spring 2019 Wood Badge Course, despite the advent and disruption of CORVID-19. What great leadership! What great Scout Spirit! What a great example of Baden-Powell’s quote that: ‘A Scout whistles and smiles under any circumstance.’ You just can’t keep a good Scouter down!”

Scoutmaster Huddleston’s Scouts are following his fine example of Leading Change! Huddleston said that, “I held a Zoom Patrol Leader Council [PLC] meeting; my PLC hate that their parents are ALL telecommuting, as their parents are driving them (the Scouts) crazy. So my Senior Patrol Leader [SL] and two Assistant Senior Patrol Leaders [ASPL] came up with a Patrol Competition called ‘TELECAMPING’. We recorded our intro via Zoom. If you want to use this to keep your Patrols and Troop and Scouts connected, excited and sustained – use away. I’ll let you know how it turns out.”

Below is the YouTube video Huddleston made of his SPL and ASPLs in a Zoom PLC that was then sent to all Troop 35 Patrol Leaders and their Scouts:

We are all looking for ways to keep our Scouts actively engaged, moving forward and Doing their Best. Through youthful enthusiasm, imagination and creativity, Scouts will find a way, when given the opportunity by adults. Well done to the Adult & Youth Leaders of Troop 35!

A final thought from Baden-Powell: “The [Scout] is not governed by don’t, but is led by do.” Let’s keep the doing in Scouting!

Troop 440 Donates 220 Bag Lunches to Homeless Shelter

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On April 8th, in the day and age of social distancing, our Troop (individually and in their own homes) prepared 220 bag lunches for Shepherd’s Table in Silver Spring, MD for “OPERATION SANDWICH.” 

Shepherd Table’s mission is to provide help to people who are homeless or in need by providing basic services, including meals, social services, medical support, clothing, and other assistance in an effective and compassionate manner.

Troop 440 had one Parent/Scout do all the shopping, sorting and delivering of supplies (to porches) and then another Parent/Scout collected the completed lunches from their fellow Scout’s porches the following afternoon and delivered the lunches to Shepherd’s Table. Almost 75% of our Troop families participated and the whole thing was completed in just over 24 hours! Remember a Scout is Helpful.