Scouting Programs

50 People Attend Scouts BSA Troop 248 for Girls’ First Welcome Party

January 15, 2019 by The Scouter Digest Staff

DC-based Scouts BSA Troop 248 for Girls is pleased to report that it hosted more than 50 people at their most recent open house and Welcome Party. As a result they now have applications for 17 girl-members and 18 adult volunteers on their Troop Committee. And that’s just a start. Interested girls can still attend their final Welcome Party on Saturday, January 19 from 10 to 11 am.

Current and new girl members also received one of the Troop’s custom-made hats. They are specially designed just for 248 Troop for Girls. It has a shorter visor, is the same BSA green color, and looks great on.

For more information, visit DC Scouts BSA Troop 248 for Girls’ homepage at http://scoutsbsadcgirls.org/. Or head to their Welcome Party this Saturday at All Souls Episcopal Church, 2300 Cathedral Ave., NW, Washington, DC and meet some of their girl members. More info on the welcome party, including transportation tips, can be found at http://scoutsbsadcgirls.org/how-to-join/ . The first Troop meeting is on February 2^nd where they will also welcome prospective members, as well as on their first overnight campout on March 8 – 10.

Scout Builds Bicycle Shed for Brisben Center

January 11, 2019 by The Scouter Digest Staff

Fifteen-year-old Nolan Ragon protects a critical means of transportation for homeless adults by raising over $4,000 for Eagle Scout project

The Thurman Brisben homeless shelter, the largest full-service, emergency homeless shelter in the Fredericksburg area, keeps many bicycles on hand so residents can get to work and necessary appointments. The Center also makes children’s bicycles available for the 90 or so boys and girls who come through the shelter every year. Due to a lack of space, the bicycles were stored outside in every kind of weather, which negatively impacted their functioning and longevity.

But not anymore. To solve this problem, Nolan Ragon, a 15-year-old Scout from Boy Scout Troop #845 in North Stafford, planned, financed, and constructed a 20’ x 12’ shed for their storage.

Nolan first assessed the Center’s need for a suitable Eagle project with Joe Hargrove, the Brisben Center’s Volunteer Coordinator. After deciding on a bicycle shed, Nolan recruited 30 volunteers, including his father, to help with the planning and building. Through yard sales and online sales of donated items, he raised over $4,000. He also negotiated with the store manager of the Lowe’s on Rt. 610 in Stafford on the sale of building supplies at store cost. It took 495 man-hours to complete the project. Nolan and his volunteers are quite proud of how it turned out.

“It is very, very solid and will last many years,” remarked Joe Hargrove with satisfaction, “and the bicycles will last longer, too. Nolan has done an incredible job.”

Staffed 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, Center provides a safe and secure temporary residence for up to 80 women, children, and men at a time. In addition to food and shelter, the Center provides intensive case management and other services that enable residents to resolve their crises and move back into housing. Thanks to Nolan’s work in preserving their bike fleet and lessening maintenance requirements, the Center’s resources will go a little bit farther in delivering its mission.

Troop 447 Scores a “Triple Triple”

January 10, 2019 by Tom Begines

On Jan. 5, 2019, Troop 447, Rockville, MD, held a rare quadruple Eagle Court of Honor for its four newest Eagle Scouts: Andrew T. Green, David E. Hinds, Jeremiah K. Whitney and Matthew S. King. These young men became Troop 447’s 136th, 137th, 138th and 139th Eagle Scouts since the troop was formed in 1950. Remarkably, each of them began their Eagle trail in the same den in Cub Scout Pack 928.

The event was truly remarkable in yet another way. It marked a “triple triple” for Troop 447. Andrew Green is the youngest of the three sons of Assistant Scoutmaster John and Sonya Green. Both of Andrew’s older brothers, Robert and William, became Eagle Scouts through Troop 447. Matthew King is the youngest of the three sons of Assistant Scoutmaster David and Helena King. Both of his older brothers, Joe and Noah, became Eagle Scouts through Troop 447. In attendance at the Court of Honor were Assistant Scoutmaster and Eagle Mentor Chuck and Sue Aubertin, parents of three sons, Michael, Gregory and Douglas, all of whom became Eagle Scouts through Troop 447. Three sets of three brothers from three 447 families, all Eagle Scouts — a “triple triple” for the troop.

The event was even more historic because it was multi-generational. “Mattie” King’s proud father, David King, Troop 447’s 36th Eagle Scout, administered the Eagle Charge during the ceremony. “I never thought, as a 16-year-old Eagle Scout in 1978, that I would have three sons and they would all become Eagles,” said Mr. King. Also in attendance was Mattie’s grandfather, David J. King, Sr., who was a member of Troop 447 in the 1950’s and an adult leader in the troop in the 1970’s. Mattie’s great grandfather, Albert T. King, was also a Troop 447 adult leader. Scoutmaster Steve Pirozzi and Master of Ceremonies and former Scoutmaster Charlie Griffiths presided over the Court held at the Rockville United Methodist Church, the chartered organization for both Troop 447 and Pack 928.

Photos courtesy of Chuck Aubertin, Cindy Griffiths, and John Green.

Whitewater Rafting BSA Award

January 7, 2019 by The Scouter Digest Staff

The Whitewater Rafting BSA Award was launched last summer to assist the many Scouting units that participate in rafting trips conducted by outfitters. The Whitewater Rafting BSA Award recognizes the challenge and adventure of such activities.

The award is available to BSA youth and adults who are members of Scouts BSA, Venturing, or Sea Scout units.

Requirements for the award focus on safety and basic paddling skills on whitewater up to Class III. All instruction and skill completions are directly supervised by a professionally trained or licensed rafting guide. A qualified raft captain must be in each raft during the required trip. Participants must help power and control the raft with paddles.

A new resource brochure is now available on the aquatics page of scouting.org at https://www.scouting.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/WW-Rafting-brochure-6-28-18.pdf to support units and outfitters in completing the Award. Check it out while you are planning your next whitewater rafting trip.

Happy New Year! Scoutbook Is Now Free for Scouts and Scout Units

January 2, 2019 by The Scouter Digest Staff

Authored by Bryan Wendell, this post originally appeared on Bryan on Scouting: A blog for the BSA’s Adult Leaders, January 1, 2019.

Fellow Scouters, 2019 is off to a great start.

Scoutbook, the Boy Scouts of America’s online tool for managing and tracking Scouting advancement, is now completely, totally, 100 percent free. The change became official today — Jan. 1, 2019.

Longtime users know how Scoutbook makes it easy (and fun!) for Scouts, parents and leaders to track advancement and milestone achievements along the Scouting trail.

Before 2019, individuals, units or councils paid a small annual fee — up to $1 per Scout per year — to access Scoutbook’s suite of unit-management features.

In 2019 and beyond, those same great features are available for the best possible price: $0.

Now everyone can learn what more than 1 million users already know: Scoutbook can improve your Scouting experience.

Here’s what else you need to know:

How will my unit be affected?

Units with a current Scoutbook account will continue to use Scoutbook as before.
Councils that provide Scoutbook accounts for their units will no longer need to manage a subscription process for units starting a new account.
Units without a current Scoutbook account will be able to access Scoutbook free on Scoutbook.com and elsewhere.

How will subscriptions/renewals work in 2019 and beyond?

The need to subscribe or renew annually will become unnecessary.

Once your unit is on Scoutbook, you’ll be set for as long as your unit would like to continue using this free tool.

How will making Scoutbook free affect its performance?

Scoutbook will only continue to improve.

The BSA IT and Member Care teams will continue to support Scoutbook with their timely service and quality resources. Scoutbook performance enhancements have been implemented regularly over the years, and its performance is continually monitored. That will continue.

What’s new in this release of Scoutbook?

Scoutbook has a new Single Sign On (SSO) process that will allow users to easily create accounts with the same properties as my.scouting accounts.

You’ll use the same account credentials (username and password) for both platforms. This makes things much easier for users by streamlining the login process.

For details, consult this list of Frequently Asked Questions [PDF], which includes a step-by-step guide for use of SSO.

Where can I get more information about this change in Scoutbook?

Keep an eye on Scoutbook.com for all the latest updates.

If you still have questions, you can always contact the friendly and helpful folks at Scoutbook support. Their email: Scoutbook.support@scouting.org

Hooked on Scouting Program Angles to Draw Area Youth to Scouting and Fishing

October 30, 2018 by The Scouter Digest Staff

As part of our fall recruitment campaign, NCAC adopted the theme of “Hooked On Scouting”. During the months of September and October, new Scouts who registered received a free piece of custom NCAC fishing gear, plus an invitation to a local fishing event where they were able to practice their fishing skills, learn more about Scouting, and meet some of the amazing volunteers who make Scouting in our Council the success that it is. Participating Scouts had a blast, catching a few trophies and a lot of smiles.