We Own Adventure

Scouting News for the DC Metro Area

The Scouter Digest Staff

Summer Camp Planning for Bear and Webelos Den Leaders

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Bear and Webelos Den Leaders! Now that you are in your role of Den Leader to incredible Bear and Webelos Scouts, you and your Den are invited to attend Summer Camp at Camp Ross at Goshen Scout Reservation this coming summer!

Camp Ross is home to a week-long summer camp experience just for rising (incoming) Webelos and rising Arrow of Light Scouts. Here, they’ll take part in some amazing outdoor adventures, including swimming, boating, fishing, archery, BB shooting, hiking, and outdoor skills development (to name a few)!

You are invited to start planning your Summer 2025 Adventures on Monday, October 14, 2024 at 7:00 pm. We’ll review “A Day in the Life” at Camp Ross, walk through the registration process, and answer any questions you may have.

As you are learning, the Cub Scout Program provides Scouts with the opportunity to learn about being a member of their family, how to take an active role in serving their neighborhood, and living by the ideals of the Scouting Program. At Camp Ross, our Scouts become members of a Camp Community with Scouts from across the Council. They meet new friends, make lasting memories, and take critical steps in learning about the next part of their Scouting journey: Scouts BSA.

To attend this Zoom Meeting, please register at:
Camp Ross: A Summer Camp Adventure for Rising Webelos and Arrow of Light Scouts
https://ncacbsa-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_gj5BxZxkSHSthMnV3QXQrw#/registration

In the meantime, explore what NCAC Cub Scout Parents and Leaders are saying about their own Camp Ross experience on our YouTube Channel:

Enhance Your Pack Summer! What Leaders are Saying About Camp Ross

“I look forward to seeing your Den at Camp Ross this summer!” – Elisabeth Warren, Goshen Scout Reservation Director, National Capital Area Council, BSA

Aspiring Scientists Excel as STEM Scouts

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STEM Scouts Lab 239 in Fredericksburg, VA, is a beacon of innovation and scientific exploration for young minds. With a mission to inspire and nurture the next generation of scientists, engineers, and innovators, this lab actively cultivates a passion for STEM among elementary and middle school students.

Last year, the elementary school lab at Rocky Run Elementary mentored 18 aspiring scientists. The curriculum included Chemistry, Archaeology, Robotics/Coding, and Inventing modules that aligned with students’ interests, challenged their understanding of the world around them, and fostered critical thinking skills. Students engaged in a hands-on learning environment, conducting experiments and projects that brought abstract concepts to life. Dedicated adult mentors enriched the experience by providing personalized support and encouragement to each student.

A truly standout achievement was the completion of “Supernova Awards” by six Cub Scouts – the most awards earned in Aquia District since the inception of the NOVA program! The Supernova is a prestigious award requiring Cub Scouts to demonstrate exceptional proficiency in STEM subjects. It is a testament to the quality of education and mentorship that these young students successfully met the rigorous standards to earn this award.

Last year, Lab 239 also launched a middle school program, successfully mentoring eight students in the fields of Microbiology and Astronomy. These subjects ignited Scouts’ curiosity and provided a deeper understanding of the biological sciences and the universe. Activities ranged from studying microorganisms under a microscope to exploring the stars and planets. The focus on hands-on learning and real-world applications is helping prepare students for future academic and career pursuits in STEM fields.

STEM Scouts Lab 239 continues its mission of inspiring young minds by introducing all new modules at Rocky Run Elementary in September. The elementary school lab meets two Tuesdays a month; the middle school lab meets two Thursdays a month. Regular meetings offer students opportunities to explore new concepts, engage in collaborative projects, and build skills.

STEM Scouts Lab 239 remains dedicated to empowering the next generation of scientists, engineers, and innovators, ensuring they will Be Prepared to tackle future 21st-century challenges and opportunities.

You can follow the lab on Facebook: STEM Scouts Lab 239, Fredericksburg, VA

 

DCSA Forest Restoration for Tomorrow – Zane J

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My name is Zane J, and I am an Eagle Scout from Troop 345 in the Wolf Trap District. I started the Distinguished Conservation Service Award (DCSA) to help the environment and the community. 

I led a forestation and range management project in Glyndon Park in Vienna, VA. I noticed that as the park was developed over time, many trees and plant life were removed as a consequence. I also noticed the park has a significant number of older trees nearing their life span, and there were not many younger trees. Over time, the loss of trees harms the plants, animals, and overall ecosystem, and the park could benefit from having the next generation of plants installed. The first step I took was to plant native 136 native plants in Glyndon Park to bring younger native plants to the park. Planting new native species is crucial as they are better adapted to local conditions and can create a more diverse and resilient ecosystem. By increasing native plants in the area, I hope to bring more native birds, bees, butterflies, and overall more wildlife, which in turn will have a major benefit to the park’s health. 

However, planting native species was only the first step in park restoration, and the second part involved removing invasive species.  It is a necessary part of this project to help the native plants thrive. Invasive species are known to outcompete native plants for resources, which can disrupt the balance of ecosystems and pose a serious threat to all wildlife within them. Removing invasive species at Glyndon Park will help ensure the park’s newly planted native species thrive in the future. Some of the invasive species removed that threatened native wildlife included English ivy, periwinkle, leatherleaf mahonia, wineberry, creeping euonymus, autumn olive, Japanese holly, Japanese honeysuckle,  and barberry. I partnered with the local community, including schools, Scouts BSA, Girl Scouts, Nature Specialist Club, and the Town of Vienna. I worked with over 50 volunteers and this project had over 200 volunteer hours. Additionally, I educated over 140 people on the importance of forestation and range management.  

The Scouting America’s DCSA program honors Scouts who carry out significant conservation projects with more rigorous requirements than a Scout BSA Eagle Scout project.  To earn the award, Scouts must complete two supersize Scout environmentally-related projects.  It requires the Scout to conduct in-depth research of a conservation issue; determine a solution; write a report; plan, execute, and lead a project; educate the community outreach; write final project reports; present their projects and findings before a conservation committee, and finally, earn seven conservation type merit badges.

My first conservation project focused on recycling tennis balls, and it was a success. Over 10,000 tennis balls were recycled, and the program I set up at Fairfax Racket Club continues to this day. I hope to inspire others to make a difference in their communities and positively impact the world.

Distinguished Conservation Service Award Projects – Jason W.

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My name is Jason W, and I am an Eagle Scout in Troop 1094 in Darnestown, Maryland. I really enjoy being outside and I really enjoy watching and learning about wildlife. I look forward to becoming a wildlife biologist one day. Back in 2022, I learned about the BSA Distinguished Conservation Service Award (DCSA). The DCSA award is the former Hornaday Award and it encourages Scouts to design, lead, and carry out a conservation project. The project must be designed to address a conservation issue or need in the local area, and it must benefit the environment and the creatures that live there. There are nine conservation project categories to choose from, and you must complete two projects in two different categories. One project may count as your Eagle project. I decided I wanted to earn this award, and my first project, which was also my Eagle project, would be in the category of pollinator habitat conservation. I created a ½ acre pollinator habitat in Poolesville, Maryland, and wrote an article about it last April. After I wrote that article, I was honored to earn the Daughters of the American Revolution National Conservation Service Award and the 2023 Glenn A. and Melinda W. Adams Eagle Scout Service Project of the Year Award for the National Capital Area Council. If you are interested in seeing photos, here is my video link.

For my 2nd Distinguished Conservation Service Award Project, I began a three-stage project to improve the fish and wildlife in my hometown of Poolesville, Maryland. The first stage was to hopefully attract a new breed of ducks to Poolesville. More specifically, wood ducks. I installed four nesting boxes at a quiet pond in Poolesville last fall. While I haven’t seen any wood ducks yet, this spring, I was able to witness hooded mergansers (cavity nesters) at this pond and watch tree swallows build nests in the boxes.

My second stage was to build 10 monofilament fishing line recycle bins. I built these bins with three members of my Troop back in December 2023. My purpose was to place nine of them around the ponds of Poolesville. The last one we built was for me to share with the Poolesville Sustainability Committee so they could have one on display at community festivals to promote the recycling of fishing lines. Fishing line takes 600 years to decompose and it is very dangerous to wildlife who get caught up in the discarded fishing line in the water. Just last year, we had a Canadian goose have a bunch of fishing lines tied around its foot that required four people to help him get loose. This fishing line will be collected and sent to a recycling facility in Iowa. Then, it will be melted down into little pellets, which will, in turn, be made into fishing tackle boxes. In February, I installed the nine recycle bins. I waited until May to go around and collect the fishing line. I am happy to report that eight recycling bins were filled with fishing lines. It was a huge collection that is currently on its way to Iowa to be recycled.

My third stage of the project was a lot of fun. I asked my community to promise to let me collect their Christmas trees after the holiday season. A fellow troop Scout and I drove around town and picked up 30 Christmas trees in January. We learned as we drove around that local farmers also collect Christmas trees to feed their goats. After we collected the trees, I recruited three of my ice hockey teammates to help me wire cinderblocks to these trees. We had to drill holes through the trees, insert the wire through the tree, and then to the cinderblock. Otherwise, the tree will float and not sink. At the end of January, a few scouts, along with my distinguished service conservation advisor, Ms. Sara Holtz, my project conservation advisor, Mr. King, and a few members of his work crew, helped me drop 30 Christmas trees into the deepest pond in Poolesville (Here is my video link of that day if you are interested). This pond is mainly silt at the bottom and lacks a structure for the fish to hide in after spawning. The trees will give cover to the small fish and help them grow larger and survive, hence improving the ecosystem. It has been a lot of fun observing the wildlife at this pond. One day, while holding catch-and-release fishing day with my Troop at the pond, we observed a female bufflehead swimming up and down the line where I dropped the Christmas trees in the water. She was diving under and would then pop up several yards later. This type of duck likes to feed on small minnows. She was finding those minnows in the trees. On another day, I saw this beautiful blue heron that had just caught a small minnow in its beak.

I can proudly say that I’ve fully completed the DCSA! Working on it has been a very hard but very rewarding process. It takes a lot of time and a lot of volunteers to help you succeed. My first project took me about 187 hours to complete, with 69 volunteers for a total of 349 project hours. My second project has taken me about 188 hours to complete with 22 volunteers for a total of 341 project hours. Combined that is a total of 690 volunteer hours of making my local ecosystem a better place for everyone to enjoy. I’m very proud of what my volunteers and I have accomplished. I’m only 16 years old and finishing up my sophomore year of high school. What I have learned the most so far in Scouting is how incredible it is to be a part of something bigger than yourself.

 

 

Scouts in Action – Saving A Life on a Plane

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On Thursday, July 11, 2024, Southwest Airlines flight 2847 started out like any other flight. We were a group of 10 Jewish scouts returning home from Philmont Scout Ranch, after completing a 100+ mile high adventure backpacking trek over the previous two weeks. It had already been a long day for us, having traveled for just over 5 hours from Cimarron, NM back to Denver for our flight home to LaGuardia Airport.

Midway through the flight, the flight attendants asked if there were any medical professionals on board the plane and to identify themselves by ringing their call button. Fortunately, there were two doctors and two nurse practitioners, one of them being part of our group of 10, sitting right next to me. They all immediately proceeded to the front of the plane. Thinking there were enough medical professionals to tend to what was going on, I simply looked down the aisle to see if I could figure out what was going on. Within a matter of two minutes, a call comes over the loudspeaker saying “Evan, get to the front of the plane!” Without really thinking about this, I ran to the front and saw a passenger on the floor in the first row.

As an adult leader, leading 14 youths on a high adventure trek, we adults are all required to have specific medical training including CPR and Wilderness First Aid, for any injuries that can occur when in the backcountry. Our nurse knew this and needed more assistance with the passenger in cardiac arrest. I was told to immediately begin CPR, something I had trained for over many years, but never had to actually do. The training immediately kicked in and I began compressions, while the doctors were going through the onboard medical kit that all airlines are required to carry. It was fairly evident that the passenger was blue and cyanotic.

There were no fewer than 4 of us working on this passenger in a very tight space between the aisle and the exit door. The two nurses were working on bagging him (forcing air into his lungs), while the doctors were continuing with assessment and administering medication and starting an intravenous line to quickly get medication into him. We all knew what had to be done and worked well together.

For those of you unaware, a person can only perform CPR for perhaps 3-4 minutes before tiring out since it is a very difficult thing to do. Thankfully, there was another passenger directly behind me who had offered to take over for me when I began to tire. Sensing that this was going to take a while, as soon as I ended CPR, I ran to the back of the plane and started directing my Scouts to get to the front of the plane to form a CPR line since I knew who was already certified to do this. We implemented a rotating four person line to rotate each person every few minutes. Having no authority, but just taking initiative, I told everyone in the second row to move to the back of the plane so the passengers in the CPR line could remain close by at the ready.

CPR continued for well over 40 minutes and by this time, the airplane medical kit had nothing left that could be used. Still in danger, I once again ran up and down the plane and asked if anyone had any EpiPen’s. While Epinephrine is a medication often used to revive the heart, an EpiPen is a much smaller dosage for an allergic reaction, something very different than a heart attack. It was thought that there was no harm at this point, since we were out of any other options. I was able to get 3 Epipen’s and immediately got them to the front of the plane. On final approach, all 3 EpiPen’s were administered in the passenger’s leg muscle.

As we were making an emergency landing in Pittsburgh, the flight attendant wanted us all seated and strapped in. One of the doctors, in a very gentle tone, said that if we did that, the patient would surely die. Compromising, we moved the patient to the floor in the first row where everyone could continue to work on him, while seated and leaning over, but not strapped in. That left two standing people and the flight attendant who could not sit because the passenger was in the way of her seat. I had the passengers create a crisscross with their arms across the aisle, holding the opposite side chair arms so that anyone in the aisle, as long as they were low, would be safe as the plane rapidly decelerated. It was a team effort by everyone involved.

Just before touchdown, a pulse was detected, no less than 45 minutes after CPR started. As soon as we arrived at the gate and the doors opened, emergency responders rushed in and took over from there. While I wouldn’t say he was stable, I can certainly say we did everything we could to give this passenger a chance; his heart was beating when he left the plane.

I failed to mention that immediately next to where we were working were five members of his family occupying the remaining seats in the first row and they saw everything. They were most helpful in providing additional medical information on the passenger as we worked together.

With the passenger and family now departed, we first got a chance to relax from the adrenaline rush that we were working under. I proceeded to go up and down the plane and thank the passengers who gave us their EpiPens as well as provide an update. My simple statement was as follows: “We did what we needed to do and now he has a chance”, without really knowing what the outcome was.
On Friday, one of the doctors got an update from the family members aboard the plane. The text message read “Thank you and everyone on the plane for what you did today. Words can’t describe how lucky we are that there were so many responders on the flight. He is currently stabilized and sedated. “

People often ask me what scouting is all about and my answer is always the same: To Be Prepared for what life throws our way. I am proud to say, our group faced a challenge and showed what they can do, even when faced with a tough situation.

If you want to find Scouting near you, visit BeAScout.org.

Reach out to The National Jewish Committe on Scouting  https://www.jewishscouting.org/

Backpacking Adventure in Wyoming

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During the last week of June 2024, when the National Capital Region was at or above 100 degrees, a contingency trek of 13 Scouts and 6 Scouters sponsored by the NCAC High Adventure Committee flew to Wyoming. On Sunday, they first visited Yellowstone National Park and Old Faithful, seeing lots of wildlife including bison, mule deer and other small mammals. They then drove south to Grand Teton National Park and did a first day hike to Taggert Lake to acclimate to the high elevations, hiking from 6,000 feet to 7,500 feet for 7 miles. They then visited the town of Jackson, Wyoming to see the sites.

On Monday, they hiked from the Granite Creek Campground for 9 miles hiking from 6,500 feet to 8,500 feet for more acclimation, followed by a unique experience of swimming in a pool constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1933. The pool is fed by hot springs and snowmelt.

On Tuesday they began their backpacking trek at the Big Sandy Trailhead of 9,120 feet hiking to Big Sandy Lake at 10,250 feet, hiking 8.4 miles. The fish were plentiful and everyone casting caught 6 or more fish each.

On Wednesday, they hiked 10.7 miles to the top of Jackass Pass at 10,805 feet through knee high snowbanks. Due to the high snow conditions they had the thrill of sliding down snowbanks to get to the trail and camped at Lizard Head Meadow at 10,031 feet.

On Thursday they hiked 13.5 miles to Valentine Lake at 10,433 but had to climb along the Lizard Head Trail at 11,857 feet. Heavy breathing due to thin air slowed the trek, but the beauty of the tall peaks and mountains inspired them.

On Friday, they hiked the most strenuous leg of their trek climbing to the top of Washakie Pass at 11,624 feet. The pass was covered by several feet of snow, but with good boots and hiking poles to steady their progress, everyone made it. They finished the hike after hiking 12.7 miles camping beside Shadow Lake at 10,140 feet.

On Saturday they hiked 13.3 miles back to the Big Sandy Trailhead with a stream crossing of icy cold snow melt water to cool everyone off.

Total distance backpacked 58.6 miles with stunning beauty of the Wind River Range to inspire them to visit again in the future.