March-April 2000March-April 2000
Edited by Scott Daniels
How can you spend the summer in New Mexico's Sangre de Cristo Mountains, the Florida Keys, or Canada's boundary waters—and get paid? By becoming a staff member at a BSA national high-adventure base.
Applicants must be physically fit, age 18 (by June 1) or older, and available to work from May 30 to Aug. 21 (through Aug. 31 for the Florida Sea Base).
The BSA will hire about 850 people to work at Philmont Scout Ranch, 160 at Florida Sea Base, and 120 at the Northern Tier bases. Jobs range from crew guide to mountain bike instructor to food server.
Starting salary is based on experience and ranges from $690 to $1,000 per month. Room and three meals a day are included.
Contact the base for an application and more information.
The article "Making Right Choices" from the March-April 1999 issue of Scouting magazine has received an exceptional merit award in the 1999 Community Action Network Media & Corporate Awards Competition.
The CAN awards recognize media for "distinguished coverage of community social problems, including solutions that work to alleviate them."
Scouting's article was among the finalists in the category for "problem-solving projects initiated by an individual or a nonprofit group." Written by freelance writer Thomas C. Bolland and illustrated by Richard Sparks, it describes how the "juvenile diversion program" offered by the BSA's Heart of Ohio Council (Mansfield, Ohio) involves youthful offenders in special Scout units as a positive alternative to their entering the juvenile justice system.
Also honored with an exceptional merit award in the same category was the Boys' Life feature "The Skate Police," from the March 1999 issue (Boy Scout edition). It described the anti-crime in-line skate patrol activity in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park by the members of Venturing Crew 582.
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Recognizing the need to better serve the youth of immigrant families who have recently moved to the United States, the National Executive Board of the BSA in October approved a resolution from the Council Services Committee that the citizenship requirements for adult leaders be made less restrictive.
The vote authorized the amending of Article VIII, Section 2, Clauses 1 and 2 of the BSA Rules and Regulations, which now reads as follows:
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Citizenship Requirement Section 2. Registration of Noncitizens Clause 1. Adults who are not citizens of the United States but who reside within the country may register with the Boy Scouts of America in any capacity if they agree to abide by the Scout Oath and Law, to respect and obey the laws of the United Sates of America, and to subscribe to the statement of religious principle. Clause 2 is deleted. |
The changes will be included in the forthcoming printing of Rules and Regulations of the Boy Scouts of America.
From Dec. 28, 2002, to Jan. 8, 2003, the 20th World Scout Jamboree will be take place in Sattahip, Cholburi Province, Thailand.
The 3,000-acre jamboree site is located on the east coast of the Gulf of Thailand, about 93 miles east of the capital city of Bangkok. It features flat plains; foothills; a white, sandy beach; and a crystal blue sea. Weather at the time of the jamboree averages 70 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
The first world jamboree in the new century, the 20th world jamboree will take place 82 years after the initial global gathering of the world's Scouts in London in 1920. Its theme will be "Share Our World, Share Our Cultures."
Participants will have an opportunity to experience the hospitality of the host country and learn about Asian cultures while participating in a variety of challenging activities at the jamboree site.
The official emblem features a typical Thai roof with the World Scout emblem at the center. The roof shape represents Thailand while the gables in the "A" shape symbolize the development of traditions and cultures, as well as the participation and support of Asian countries in the jamboree.
Packs, troops, and crews have until March 15 to enter their service projects in the annual Colgate Youth For America campaign. A $1,000 first place, $500 second place, $300 third place, and 50 $100 fourth-place prizes will be awarded to local BSA units.
Entries must be postmarked no later than March 15, 2000. They should describe unit service work between March 1, 1999, and March 1, 2000, including the need for a project and how it was filled. (Details of a single, large project, program, or event are better than a list of several activities.) Descriptive materials, including newspaper clips, etc., may be attached but cannot be returned. Projects are judged on originality and the extent of community involvement or benefit.
Ask for entry forms at Scout council service centers, or send an e-mail request to fcw001@aol.com for one to be sent to you by regular mail. You can also print the form directly off your computer screen at http://www.colgate.com/Community/yfa_form_1999.html.
Send entries to Colgate Youth for America, Box 1058, FDR Station, New York, NY 10150-1058.
These sites on the World Wide Web offer ideas for activities and other resources useful to Scout leaders, parents, and youth.
Funbrain (http://www.funbrain.com) has a variety of learning games divided into different age-groups.
From math to music, this site has something for everyone.
React (http://www.react.com) is a popular weekly online magazine for teen-agers, with entertainment news about music, TV, and film. React also has resource columns about homework, dating, and fashion.
Billy Bear's Playground (http://www.billybear4kids.com) is packed with games and links to other game sites.
Although the opening graphics are geared for younger kids, the games are fun for any age. (Most require plug-ins and newer browsers.)
eHow (http://www.ehow.com) is a site with a multitude of practical how-to's on everything from writing limericks to applying to medical school. There are special "eHows for Who You Are" for teachers, teens, kids, and more, making this a fun site to browse.
The Kodak Picture Playground (http://alts1.kodak.com/US/en/corp/playground) is a great place to manipulate digital images. The site lets users upload images from their computers or the Web and then play with them using online tools. It is supported with useful links to information on using digital cameras and creating digital images.
Over the past six years, hundreds of advancing Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts in Ohio's Erie Shores Council have benefited from the council's free rank badge program, in which units receive rank emblems earned by their Scouts at no cost to unit or youth.
To qualify, units must participate in (1) the council's annual fall popcorn sale, in addition to (2) the Family Friends of Scouting campaign; plus (3) send Cub Scout representatives to one of several day camps and Boy Scouts to a long-term camping experience at the Pioneer Scout Reservation.
Senior district executive Sean Henneman credits the council's advancement committee for the idea, which carries a relatively small price tag (about $1.25 for each embroidered uniform patch) but draws a big reaction from the kids.
"In 1999 142 units participated in the program," Henneman says. "We've found it helps promote both councilwide activities and individual advancement."
Many awards are available to Scouts on a nationwide basis, but some councils create their own special forms of recognition to spur individual advancement and build interest in their programs.
Ohio's Tecumseh Council, for example, recently established a new Warrior Award to recognize annual participation in Boy Scout summer camp and service to the council's Camp Birch by both youths and adults. To qualify for the award, all Scouts (except for Eagle Scouts) must advance by one rank or earn three merit badges and participate in various camping activities.
The award for Boy Scouts consists of an eagle claw and two beads of various colors, with each color based on years of camping experience—red for first-year campers, green for second-year, yellow for third-year, blue for fourth-year, orange for fifth-year, and crystal for sixth-year and above. Awards for adult leaders who qualify (by camping with their units for at least four nights) feature lilac-colored beads.
Other beads can be added by Scouts and leaders who participate in such events as swimming, sailing, horseback riding, camp skits, and service projects.
Described as "the first health guide for the age of managed care," the Harvard Medical School Family Health Guide (Simon & Schuster, $40) has information for all of life's stages, from infancy to old age. Families will find answers to health questions about children, like "what to do for middle-of-the-night ear pain" and "fever to stomachache—when to call the doctor." Adult medical health questions and concerns, such as "from headaches to hemorrhages" and "screening tests—what works...," are also addressed.
The guides's 1,192 pages will be continuously updated on a special Web site, http://www.health.harvard.edu/fhg. Updates include the latest information on new treatments, drugs, diagnostic tests, and research studies.
The Web site also includes a variety of resources, such as printable first-aid charts and question-and-answer checklists a patient can take to a doctor's appointment.
Authors Mark Ivey and Ralph Bond show how computers can bring families closer together by providing a way to encourage interaction between parents and children.
The authors are both dads and have successfully used their methods with their own children. They focus on things parents "really want to know about computers," like how to use a PC to help a child learn to read. Rather than dwell on how to reformat a hard drive, they discuss how to choose nonviolent computer games for children.
Among the book's many other topics are raising a computer-smart daughter; balancing a child's use of games and educational programs; using the computer to nurture a child's critical-thinking skills; learning the software and Web-site rating system to be more informed on cyberspace safety; childproofing a PC by managing access to it; and using e-mail and the Web for online assistance and information.
An item in News Briefs in the January-February issue of Scouting magazine included only a partial description of the one standard that has been modified for packs, troops, and teams earning the National Quality Unit Award for 2000.
The complete modified standard states: A Boys' Life subscription will go into the homes of all [youth] members, or the unit will have a 10 percent increase [in subscriptions] over a year ago.
The modified standard is one of six National Quality Unit Award optional standards. To earn Quality status, a unit must achieve four required standards (for training, two-deep leadership, outdoor activities, and on-time charter renewal) plus any two of the six optional standards.
60—number of small evergreen trees planted by volunteers during a campaign to "spruce up" the 70-year-old parade field at the Erie Shores Council's Camp Miakonda near Toledo, Ohio.
304—Scouters from the Northern Lights Council who spent thousands of hours over a single weekend building new facilities and refurbishing old ones at Camp Wilderness in north-central Minnesota.
500—Webelos Scouts and Scouters who attended a weekend Activity Badge Midway at the Sagamore Council's Cary Camp in October. The event, organized by Tecumseh District Scouters, included presentations on nine activity badges, a Webelos Leader Outdoor Training session, a Boy Scout skills preview, a conservation project, and a ham radio station for participating in the Jamboree-on-the-Air.
$458—Average increase in popcorn sales among the 101 packs and troops participating in the annual campaign in the Gamehaven Council (Rochester, Minn.). Units sold an average of $5,255 worth of popcorn (a 9.5 percent increase over the previous year), earning just under $13,000 in prizes and nearly $145,000 in commissions to support their programs.
2,000—number of persons celebrating Scouting at a FamilyFest show in Altamonte Springs, Fla.
In 1999, more than 400 units from the Central Florida Council participated in a total of eight FamilyFest shows.
$4,378—value of popcorn sold by Cub Scout Wade Redick, of Pack 95, Irmo, S.C., earning the 8-year-old third grader a $1,000 scholarship as top salesman in the Indian Waters Council's annual campaign.
Councilwide, 168 units sold more than $400,000 worth of popcorn.
7,000—Scouts and Scouters who attended the 1999 New Hampshire Jamboree. The Daniel Webster Council's weekend encampment featured more than 100 attractions, including activities like rock climbing, rafting, canoeing, kayaking, and mountain biking; a BB-gun range; exhibits like a living history blacksmith shop; and events like a Civil War reenactment.
31,736—The equivalent number of meals provided to the hungry through the Red Cross Emergency Food Bank by a record-setting 1999 Scouting for Food campaign in Ohio's Miami Valley Council.
$100,000—The record amount netted for Scouting programs in the Greater Niagara Frontier Council at last summer's annual Lobster Fest attended by 1,000 seafood lovers in Buffalo, N.Y.
April 22 marks the 30th anniversary of Earth Day. This year's theme is clean energy, with events scheduled worldwide at all levels of society—schools, universities, religious communities, businesses, and local governments.
The Web site http://www.earthday.net has a worldwide calendar of events and information on how to organize or participate in activities. The site also lists the 3,200 organizations in 167 countries that are part of Earth Day Network, the international organization coordinating Earth Day 2000 events.
During the week of April 24 to 30, millions of Americans will turn off the TV to focus attention not on the quality of TV programming but on the excessive quantity of television that many Americans watch.
According to TV-Free America executive director Fran Vespe, "National TV-Turnoff Week helps millions of Americans break free of TV and reconnect to their families, friends, and communities. Its great success over the past five years demonstrates what an important and valuable event it is."
To encourage schools, churches, libraries, and whole communities to participate in National TV-Turnoff Week, TV-Free America has produced an organizer's kit that includes a 48-page guidebook, posters, and bumper stickers. To order the kit ($15), T-shirts, or other resource materials, call (202) 887-0436, fax (202) 518-5560, or visit the Web site at htp://www.tvfa.org.
The 1999 index for Scouting magazine is available, as well as indexes for each year back to 1970.
For each index, send a self-addressed, stamped, business-letter envelope; for more than three, send a larger envelope with one first-class stamp for each index requested. Order the indexes from Scouting Magazine Index, S204, P.O. Box 152079, Irving, TX 75015-2079.
 Scouts (from left) Joey Procida, Kyle Stepien, Tim Morris, Joey Besio, Bob Just, Ryan Fridley, Andrew Thompson, and John McCarthy, of Troop 180 (chartered to Ashbury United Methodist Church, New Port Richey, Fla.), participate in the flag ceremony before a Tampa Bay Devil Rays game at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg. |
For the third straight season, Webelos Scouts and Boy Scouts in the West Central Florida Council will provide Scout color guards for all Sunday home games of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. On 13 "family nights," a color guard of Scouts takes center stage during the pregame playing of the national anthem; then the Scouts sit in choice seats to see big-league baseball action.
Not surprisingly, applicants far exceed available openings, says assistant Scout executive John Baringer. "The council has developed a really warm relationship with the Devil Rays," he notes. "The Scouts love the opportunity to carry their own state and national flags at the games, and [the flag ceremonies are] a great way to increase Scouting's visibility in the community."
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