OA Scouts led an interfaith service at the Order of the Arrow Conclave Northeast Regional Leadership Camp at Camp William B. Snyder. Scouts BSA members and adult leaders were there representing the Protestant, Latter-Day Saints, Catholic, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, and Sikh faiths. Thank you, Scouts, for showing that Duty to God touches all cultures!
On March 8, Pack 1892 Bear Scout Constantine H. and his brother, Tiger Scout Nicholas H. visited Summit Ropes in Chantilly, Va (near Dulles airport) for an unforgettable afternoon of climbing. The two scouts had never attempted anything comparable to the course, but with the constant encouragement and personal support of the facility’s staff, the scouts overcame their initial fears and discovered that they really could do it!
When the five girls of troop 987 first met, they each decided that they needed to be the Senior Patrol Leader. (We put that decision off for a bit.) One thing they did agree on was that they all wanted to be the nation’s first female Eagle Scout. I carefully discussed the difficulties with such a task, but they were undaunted. I explained this was something that would require pure dedication and a lot of luck, but our boy troop’s philosophy has always been, “Scout led… no matter what”, so I did what any Scout leader would have done, and turned to the experts.
Five years ago, Jeffrey H., one of our Eagle Scouts, commented that it was impractical to make scouts wait for summer camp to take part in a program that could easily be completed at home. I told him if he saw a problem in the world, he should work to fix it. His answer was to create our New Scout Quest (NSQ) program, which he then led until his election to Senior Patrol Leader. The basis for his program was that if Scouts were busy at meetings and ranked up faster, then they would stay active in the program. He began creating and scheduling lessons based on a belief that if the Scouts knew what was planned, they would be more likely to attend the meetings and continue Scouting. The following year we had a 95% retention rate. He trained the instructors in this method, and when he turned 18 in October, we had a fully functional program for new Scouts.
So when the girls talked about their objectives, three of my Scouts came to mind immediately. We would need Jeffrey, of course, but we would also need the instructors, Alex G. and Bill G. who had spent the last 4 years leading and refining the course. All three were more than excited to help, although one had to join as an adult leader. They began preparations for this new program. The girls this year are an exciting and unique chance to show just how dynamic this program is. Three of the five have older brothers who are Eagle Scouts. One has an older brother who is a 13 year old Life Scout, and one will be the first Eagle Scout in her family! They have been watching their brothers have a great time at scouting and have waited for their chance to shine.
As they joined, they each received a Scout handbook. They worked for a couple of weeks to learn the requirements for Scout, and then met on February 1st to kick off Family Scouting and become the first girls to attend a Scoutmaster conference and receive the Scout rank. They attended their first camp out in February (these girls are tough!) and three of them (Annalise S., Abby E., and Katie H.) attained the rank of Tenderfoot a few days ago. The other two – Victoria S. and Sarah J. – will receive it next week at our next meeting.
As a Scoutmaster I have seen more than a hundred scouts attend our NSQ program. Almost all of them are 11. I have noticed that the girls are less distracted and learn the book skills a great deal faster than the boys. The boys are more adept at the physical skills such as fire building and orienteering. This is an observation that may help your program adapt to the different needs of a girls program. It is amazing to watch history be made with a group of girls who are so driven to be great Scouts.
Hey Cub Scouts (and Cub Scout parents) – have you ever wanted to meet a famous scientist? Do you want to find out what it’s really like to be an engineer? Do you have a science project that you want to share? Or do you like math games and puzzles? We have all that and more for Cub Scouts at STEM U!
Sign up right now for STEM U on June 15 at Microsoft Training Center in Reston!
And bring your mom, dad and the whole family because there will be great things for them to learn too!
Earlier this month Troop 248G took the Hornaday hike, one of the HOST trails through Washington, DC. Six Scouts and three adult leaders joined the hike that commenced at the Smithsonian Zoo at 8 am and wrapped up at the Smithsonian Castle around 1:30 pm. The hike was about 6.2 miles in total.
Four of the Scouts completed the entire hike and the associated eight Hornaday-specific trivia questions, and got their hike card stamped at the WWII memorial. Another of the Scouts got her hike card stamped at the WWII memorial and answered 6 of 8 trivia questions, which is the minimum threshold for earning the hike pin.
The Scouts met many people along the way, including a Canadian Scout from Quebec as well as several WWII and Korean War vets who were there for an honor flight visit.
The Hornaday Hike overlaps much of the hike trail with the Colin Livingstone HOST hike. However, the trivia questions to earn the pin are unique. The hike was a lot of fun but be aware that many of the hike notes or directions are cryptic and it took us some time to orient properly. Now that I know where certain items are or what hint a hike item refers to, I think the hike could be winnowed down to a solid 4.5 hours.
The local Venturing Officers Association (VOA) held a Court of Honor on Saturday, May 18. Congratulations to the 9 recipients of the Council’s Venturing Leadership Award!
Youth recipients were Thomas Howard (incoming VOA President), Johana Marroquin, Melissa Mader, and Elana Taylor.
Adult recipients were Pam Chu (incoming VOA Advisor), Katie Kahkonen, Stanley Kwok, Ken Barret, and Arrie Heck.
Kudos to the VOA officers hosting the event — it was a great turnout and fun to see so many familiar faces!
