RememberSchiff

Camp Titanic? Strike that, Titanic crew served children first.

Captain Ross A. Reynolds, USMC 1995-2022 ...Ross had an innate desire to serve. He joined Scouts at an early age and through dedication to his community and grit he obtained the status of Eagle Scout in 2011, scouting's highest honor. While at the B.S.A. Camp Wanocksett, Ross was a dedicated staff member for 8 years and an active member of the Order of the Arrow serving in roles on the Gischachsummen team related inductions and ceremonies. He also attended the National Order of the Arrow Conference in 2012. He loved hiking, camping, and boating. Some of his fondest memories were of times spent at the lake at Camp Wanocksett. ... https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/fitchburg/name/cpt-usmc-obituary?id=33970130

We also have a safety drill so scouts know where to gather (add storm shelter signs). You might look at camp signs in tornado areas. So we have a camp guide's section Safety Rules and Procedures, posted signs repeating those rules and procedures, and a drill at the start of camp. Another $0.01

What I have seen are just the Camp Safety Rules (including bad weather, wildfires procedures) printed in large type on a 5x7 or larger cards and enclosed in a weatherproof seal. These signs are posted on all structures - camp office to latrines. Not unlike the Safety Signs in classrooms regarding nearest fire exit and shelter-in-place. I like the NOAA sign. another reference https://www.acacamps.org/resource-library/articles/lightning-safety-outdoors

Yeah, I would expect a "no harm, no foul" informal response or perhaps a "more training" response even though both training and safety procedures were not followed. WTH, add your valued opinion! What constructive resolution would you recommend? Will you send scouts to the next NYLT if these "adults" are again on staff (we did not). In your lean-to photo, I saw no Safety signage regarding bad weather procedures. IMO, there Should be a weatherproof sign. Are those braces just 1x4? My $0.01,

Deer Lake (CT) Update 3/30/2022: The Connecticut Attorney General William Tong is now involved. Sale of the Deer Lake camp property in Killingworth has garnered significant public attention and interest from community leaders and preservationists. The Office of the Attorney General is currently reviewing questions regarding the legal status of the property and a potential sale. At the request of Attorney General Tong and due the pending inquiry into the property, the Boy Scouts have agreed to delay their decision on the sale of the property until May 1, extending their previous March 31 deadline. “I thank the Boy Scouts for hearing my concerns and agreeing to postpone this deadline while our inquiry into the property proceeds, and for being cooperative and responsive to our questions. I have heard from a number of community leaders and preservationists who have a strong interest in the future of Deer Lake. I hope that this extended time will allow all sides to work together on a positive resolution,” said Attorney General Tong. https://portal.ct.gov/AG/Press-Releases/2022-Press-Releases/Attorney-General-Tong-Update-on-Deer-Lake-Sale https://www.wtnh.com/news/conservation-group-hopes-to-outbid-developer-for-boy-scout-property-in-ct/ Mark Kraus, Scout Executive of the Connecticut Yankee Council, said Wednesday morning that the sale to developers was still in place. Kraus did not respond for a request for comment after Tong’s announcement Wednesday afternoon. https://www.courant.com/news/connecticut/hc-news-boy-scouts-deer-lake-postpone-deadline-may-1-20220330-5sutpcddqnbdzplgne4qzuzktu-story.html

Some of my scouts were injured during this NYLT training. As instructed by "adults" (keeping it scoutlike), scouts gathered on high ground under tall Eastern White Pines under a canvas canopy with aluminum poles during the lightning storm. Camp Bell had a written weather safety procedure to evacuate downhill to the Camp Lodge. Neither training nor this camp policy were followed. Despite the injuries, scouter and parent uproar, the same "adults" staffed NYLT the next summer. Eventually, word got to National, perhaps through this forum, perhaps through incident reports. https://filestore.scouting.org/filestore/pdf/680-056_lightning.pdf This incident is Incident Review #4 on above pdf.

1. Reminder Annual Report due to Congress April 1. From our Congressional Charter as stated recently in https://casedocs.omniagentsolutions.com/cmsvol2/pub_47373/15dbaff5-5871-4ffd-a73c-0395915da442_8647.pdf Section 8. That on or before the first day of April of each year the said Boy Scouts of America shall make and transmit to Congress a report of its proceedings for the year ending December thirty-first preceding. * Section 9. That Congress shall have the right to repeal, alter, or amend this Act at any time. Approved 15 June 1916 Woodrow Wilson *As amended August 30, 1964, Pub. L. 88-504, 78 Stat. 636 2. Regarding Section 9 above, though it is a statement of the obvious, I could NOT find that section in any online reference of our Federal Charter? https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/36/subtitle-II/part-B/chapter-309 https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?path=/prelim@title36/subtitle2/partB/chapter309&edition=prelim Title 36 U.S. Code Chapter 309 - Boy Scouts of America has eight sections not nine. 3. IMHO, there should be some consideration now as to what new definitive financial (e.g. Trust account) and Youth Protection information should be included in future Annual Reports to Congress regarding the safety of Scouting. These new reporting requirements should be stated in the approved "plan". My $0.02,

May, 2011: LEOMINSTER, MA — When considering Eagle Scout project possibilities, Ross Reynolds knew he wanted to do something to make Memorial Day services in Leominster more aesthetically pleasing. Reynolds, 16, has been a Scout since the third grade and, along with other local Scouts, participates in Memorial Day exercises to honor veterans every May. “I thought if I could help out, I kind of feel honored to do it,” said Reynolds. He approached city Veterans Agent Richard Voutour to learn which veterans’ properties needed fixing, and Voutour pointed him to the rear side of the Veterans Center on West Street. A garden along the wall had become overgrown, and telephone poles laid down to retain it were rotting. What was supposed to be a peaceful reflection point for public use looked “very bad,” according to Reynolds. Beginning with demolition last October, Reynolds, his father, and fellow members of Troop 477 of Leominster, rebuilt the garden. It took several hundred dollars, which Reynolds raised, and a number of community donations, but the teen was able to plant a new garden, build a new cement retaining wall, and install lattice work behind it. The result is a crisp, green, manicured garden of perennials that’s the perfect backdrop to benches overlooking Rockwell Pond.... Reynolds, who had no prior landscaping experience, is proud of the way it turned out and is eager for the public to see it...hopes the site will be a “better place for people to come down and visit,” but the project is also helping him to achieve Eagle Scout status, which is something a minority of Scouts attain. https://www.sentinelandenterprise.com/2011/05/25/scout-puts-some-polish-on-leominster-veterans-center/ March, 2022: Captain Ross Reynolds, U.S. Marine Corps photo by Capt. Katrina Herrera/Released Four Marines were killed when their Osprey aircraft crashed in Norway during a NATO training exercise, Cold Response. The four Marines, all with Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 261, were Capt. Matthew J. Tomkiewicz, 27, of Fort Wayne, Indiana, Capt. Ross A. Reynolds, 27, of Leominster, Massachusetts, Gunnery Sgt. James W. Speedy, 30, of Cambridge, Ohio, and Cpl. Jacob M. Moore, 24, of Catlettsburg, Kentucky. Captain Ross Reynolds, 27, of Leominster, MA, served as an MV-22B Osprey pilot. He joined the Marine Corps on May 13, 2017 and earned decorations including the National Defense Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon. https://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/your-marine-corps/2022/03/20/4-us-marines-killed-in-osprey-accident-in-norway-identified/ https://www.wcvb.com/article/marines-pilot-capt-ross-reynolds-killed-in-norway-osprey-crash-was-a-native-of-leominster/39485562 https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/broken-hearted-family-mourns-mass-marine-killed-in-norway-nato-training-exercise/2674437/ Scout Salute and Farewell.

Good article in WP “It’s sad that we have to make these,” she said. “But this could make a difference, if we get all these boxes out to Ukraine.” The kits were designed by Dan Olesnicky, a trauma surgeon who is a Ukrainian scout, and many Plast chapters have been filling boxes with them in recent weeks, shipping them overseas to Plast Ukraine along with other aid. On Saturday, the Bethesda school cafeteria echoed with the sound of mothers calling to their children in Ukrainian, the buzz of vacuum-sealers closing the filled bags, and the screech of duct tape being pulled and torn. Some tape was used to seal filled boxes of first-aid kits, some was wrapped around small pieces of cardboard to add to the bags to help craft a makeshift splint or stretcher, or other emergency medical aid on the ground.... More at source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/03/19/ukrainian-scouts-first-aid-kits/

Community reacts to plans to close Camp Trexler Both former campers agreed that closing the only Cub Scout overnight camp in the area, will further worsen recruitment issues. “The Cub Scouts won't have a place to go anymore. So, they're gonna have to build a whole other camp just to support the Cub Scouts," said Biichle. “They have a really serious problem at the Cub Scout level, and that's where recruiting happens. Very few kids get involved at age 12 or 13. They get hooked when they're seven or eight, and they continue with it," said Mira. https://fox56.com/news/local/community-reacts-to-the-plans-to-close-of-camp-trexler

From OP, let's stay on topic. Thanks RS

The Washington, D.C. Chapter of the Plast Ukrainian Scouting Organization compiled emergency medical kits. Supplies include Band-Aids, gauze, Tylenol, latex gloves, duct tape and other basic goods. The kits will go to an organization in New Jersey, to be mailed to Western Ukraine. Then, scouts in Ukraine will receive the kits and distribute them across the country. ...the scouts ended the day packing between 1,000 to 1,500 kits to be shipped to Ukraine. The Ukrainian girl and boy scouts will be back next weekend and encourage more people to participate. More at sources: https://www.mymcmedia.org/ukrainian-girl-and-boy-scouts-make-emergency-medical-kits-in-bethesda/ https://www.localdvm.com/news/maryland/ukrainian-boy-and-girl-scouts-pack-medical-kits/

My guess, the loan will be connected to the sale of the camp, i.e., the buyer will self-finance or co-sign loan as part of a sweet purchase deal. I would like to know where the $4.5m will go. Perhaps to finance the missing infrastructure at the remaining camp? Maybe yet another STEM/Council Scout Center? My $0.02,

Minsi Trails Council is selling 900 acre Trexler Scout Reservation property in Monroe County, PA (Poconos) to help cover its $2.6 million conribution to the Trust. "The council said it will take out a $4.5 million loan to help cover the debt and operations." Starting in 2024, all Minsi Trails camping will occur at Camp Minsi on the 400-acre Stillwater Lake in Coolbaugh and Tobyhanna townships. “Respectfully, this is quite possibly the most horrible decision that council leadership could have made,” Matthew Miles of Palmerton posted in a Facebook response to Minsi Trails Council’s post. “Thanks to the donation of the land by General Harry C. Trexler a century ago, scouting was given a chance to grow and flourish in Eastern Pennsylvania. Now, because no one wants to explore all options, or think outside of the box, this land will be gone. There is zero chance of getting this land back.” “We were told nothing was going to change with the camps,” Peter Felton said. “To consolidate into one camp is ridiculous. It will require infrastructure. [Trexler] has two dining halls, a pool and an area built for the Cub Scouts, which Minsi would need to put in. This camp has been here since I was a child and it’s a legacy going away.” In the last ten years, Council Boy Scout membership has declined from over 10,000 youth to 4,500. Minsi Trails Council will also sell/relocate its Service Center and Scout Store. https://www.mcall.com/news/local/mc-nws-trexler-scout-reservation-closing-20220317-724t6mcsnnf5xf5qasshfjby6y-story.html https://www.minsitrails.org/document/mtcstatement/208688 https://www.lehighvalleylive.com/news/2022/03/local-boy-scouts-council-to-sell-poconos-camp-to-pay-for-sexual-abuse-settlements.html

Agree with others. Delegate to someone who knows. IMHO, just heat water for whatever - tea, hot chocolate, coffee,... For summer camp, I bring a pour over brew cone, filter cone, and my own ground. Otherwise, I bring Folgers coffee crystals.

Scouts for SDG Sustainable Development Goals . 17 goals are listed. 1. No Poverty 2. Zero Hunger 3. Good Health and Well-Being 4. Quality Education 5. Gender Equality 6. Clean Water and Sanitation 7. Affordable and Clean Energy 8. Decent Jobs and Economic Growth 9. Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure 10. Reduced Inequalities 11. Sustainable Communities 12. Responsible Consumption and Production 13. Climate Action 14. Life Below Water 15. Life on Land 16. Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions 17. Partnerships for the Goals -

SCOUTS SUPPORT REFUGEES AND FAMILIES FLEEING UKRAINE ACROSS BORDERS "My Scouting service for past few days has taken on a different dimension. I feel that I am doing what I should be doing - it's such an inner urge to act and help as much as I can!” said Albin, a young Scout volunteering with Polish Scouting and Guiding Association (ZHP) in the bordering areas. https://www.scout.org/fr/node/643051

As I understand, Cape Cod & Islands Council is its own district. https://www.scoutscapecod.org/

Amazing video, here is a snapshot. “The preservation is beyond imagination,” Bound told NBC News by phone on Wednesday, adding that the ship’s name could still be seen emblazoned across the stern. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/ernest-shackletons-ship-endurance-antarctica-sea-106-years-1915-rcna19264

"A team of adventurers, marine archaeologists and technicians located the wreck at the bottom of the Weddell Sea, east of the Antarctic Peninsula, using undersea drones. Battling sea ice and freezing temperatures, the team had been searching for more than two weeks in a 150-square-mile area around where the ship went down in 1915." Enclosed and crushed by Antarctic ice and sinking in Nov, 1915 Sources: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/09/climate/endurance-wreck-found-shackleton.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endurance_(1912_ship)

...it is no surprise that the mass tort trial lawyers are now in position— consistent with their sketchy shakedown playbook—to hold up the proceedings in exchange for a massive payday, that the costs of the proceedings themselves are skyrocketing, and that there is now a real risk that all of this will dilute the money available for the original victims whose claims were the impetus for the bankruptcy filing in the first place.[13] For example, recent reports are that the bill for the Boy Scouts’s professionals and those hired by the official creditors’ committees will be more than $205 million, which is approaching the size of the trust for survivors that has been part of ongoing settlement discussions. Experts have noted with alarm that the bills for lawyers and others in connection with the fraught proceedings are on a path to being more than 40% of the Boy Scouts of America’s self-reported assets, whereas in past mega-bankruptcies the fees are more like 2-3%, and certainly less than 10%. Source: The Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy , March 7, 2022 Corporate Bankruptcy Gets A Shakedown From Mass Tort Trial Lawyers by Lawrence A. Friedman https://www.harvard-jlpp.com/corporate-bankruptcy-gets-a-shakedown-from-mass-tort-trial-lawyers-lawrence-a-friedman/ Also recommended commentary: Bankruptcy and the Boy Scouts by Michael Krauss https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelkrauss/2022/03/08/bankruptcy-and-the-boy-scouts/?sh=314fea805093

During the pandemic, IMHO the most relevant merit badge became Public Health. Now with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, I would add Citizenship in the World. From requirements: 3. Do the following: a. Pick a current world event. In relation to this current event, discuss with your counselor how a country’s national interest, history, and its relationship with other countries might affect areas such as its security, its economy, its values, and the health of its citizens. b. Select a foreign country and discuss with your counselor how its geography, natural resources, and climate influence its economy and its global partnerships with other countries. 4. Do TWO of the following: a. Explain international law and how it differs from national law. Explain the role of international law and how international law can be used as a tool for conflict resolution. My $0.02,

Those links are very informative. Thank you. ~ RS