January-February 2002

Edited by Scott Daniels

• European Camp Staff Program seeks applications from BSA
• Spread the word: Share extra copies of Scouting magazine
• Contest promotes revised Traffic Safety merit badge
• Program Resources by the Day, Week and Month

Apply now for staff positions at BSA national high adventure bases

This summer the BSA will hire about 950 people to work at Philmont Scout Ranch, 160 at the Florida Sea Base, and 120 at the Northern Tier bases. Jobs range from crew guide to mountain bike instructor to food server.

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). Starting salary is based on experience and ranges from $718 to $1,000 per month. Room and three meals a day are included. Contact each base for an application and information:

• Philmont Scout Ranch, Route 1, Box 35, Cimarron, NM 87714, (505) 376-2281, philstaff@cimarron.springercoop.com.
• Northern Tier National High Adventure Programs, P.O. Box 509, Ely, MN 55731, (218) 365-4811, info@ntier.org.
• Florida National High Adventure Sea Base, P.O. Box 1906, Islamorada, FL 33036, (305) 664-4173.

BSA service projects win awards in Colgate Youth for America campaign

For innovative and successful service projects, 52 Scouting groups were honored in the 2000-2001 Colgate Youth for America campaign. Winners received grants from $100 to $1,000. They included 28 Boy Scout troops, 17 Cub Scout packs, one Venturing crew, two local Scout councils, a council district, an Eagle Scout group, a Sea Scout ship, and an Explorer post. The top three BSA winners were:

• Tecumseh Council BSA, Springfield, Ohio ($1,000), for its five-day summer Challenge Camp, which provides children from troubled communities with opportunities to learn new skills and build self-esteem through personal achievement. Adult staff teach camping and outdoor skills as well as sports and crafts to girls and boys in grades 4 to 6.
• Boy Scout Troop 636, Jim Thorpe, Pa. ($500), for creative money-earning activities resulting in the purchase of an automatic external defibrillator (AED) for local police, who use the emergency equipment to treat heart attack victims prior to the arrival of ambulances. Members of Troop 636 are routinely certified in CPR and first aid. Last year, three Scouts were certified on the defibrillators as well.
• Cub Scout Pack 51, Clarendon Hills, Ill. ($300), for an ongoing Scouting for Food campaign that assists the local food pantry in helping needy families. Each month, the pack identified the major needs of the pantry and dens took shifts on collection days at local food stores.

In addition to BSA units, the program honors projects of the Girl Scouts of the U.S.A., Boys and Girls Clubs of America, Girls Incorporated, Camp Fire Inc., and the National 4-H Council.

A list of all 2000-2001 winners is available at www.colgate.com (click on "Colgate Cares"), along with information for entering the next competition. Entry forms can be printed out and mailed to Colgate Youth for America, P.O. Box 1058, FDR Station, New York, NY 10150-1058, or obtained by sending a stamped, self-addressed envelope to the above address. Entries must be postmarked no later than March 15, 2002.

Scout is honored for book collection service project

In 1997, on a trip to the African nation of Tanzania to meet pen pals and deliver donated supplies to a rural school, Ryley Berg realized the school had no library. Back home in Woodbury, Minn., he enlisted the help of his fellow Boy Scouts in Troop 71 and classmates in a school club to collect books to meet that need.

The result was nearly 900 books, which were sent to two rural schools in Tanzania. In recognition, Ryley was named one of two honorees from his state in the 2001 Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program, which annually honors high school and middle school students for outstanding volunteer community service.

The program, which is sponsored by Prudential in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals, drew more than 22,000 applications in 2001. It has honored more than 30,000 young volunteers since 1995.

Two winners from each state, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico are named in February. In May in Washington, D.C., 10 of the 104 finalists are honored as national winners.

More information is available at www.prudential.com/community/spirit or from Prudential, 751 Broad Street, 16th Floor, Newark, NJ 07102, (973) 802-4568.

Pennsylvania Scouts Win International Envirothon

The "Green Flash" squad of Eagle Scouts from Troop 57, North East, Pa., defeated teams from 41 states and seven Canadian provinces in winning the 2001 Canon Envirothon scientific competition. (Front, from left) Carson Engelskirger and Jeremy Stempka; (rear) Justin Pierson, Troop 57 Scoutmaster John Hallenburg, Markus Fish, and Doug Fynan. Photograph by John Halenburg

A team of Scouts from Troop 57 of North East, Pa., displayed exceptional knowledge of environmental problems and solutions to win first place in the 2001 Canon Envirothon, an international scientific competition for high school-age youth sponsored by Canon U.S.A. As the only Envirothon team representing a BSA unit, the Pennsylvania Scouts defeated other winning teams from 41 states and seven Canadian provinces.

To win, the Troop 57 team had to develop the best and most comprehensive plan for dealing with urban household non-point source pollution in the Pearl River Watershed, a major environmental concern in the Jackson, Miss., area, where competition finals were held.

All five members of the winning Troop 57 team—Carson Engelskirger, Markus Fish, Doug Fynan, Justin Pierson, and Jeremy Stempka—are Eagle Scouts and veterans of past Envirothon competitions. Along with the team championship, each Scout received a $3,000 college scholarship.

"These boys have put in hundreds of hours of study and research on environmental issues," says John Hallenburg, who has served as Scoutmaster of Troop 57 for the past 23 years. "Unlike other Envirothon teams, we receive no backing or support from our local high school, and all our training takes place within the context of the traditional Scouting program."

Nicknamed the "Green Flash," the troop-based team entered its first Envirothon in 1992 and won the first of 10 straight annual countywide competitions. "We beat out 28 high school teams in our county in 2001, then defeated 65 other county champions to win the state title and the right to represent Pennsylvania in the international competition," Hallenburg says.

In the troop, 17 boys have served on Envirothon teams, and 14 have become Eagle Scouts. Hallenburg credits the program with helping to keep many older Scouts active in the troop.

Eagle Scout Justin Pierson, now an environmental science major at Allegheny College, says its BSA background gives the "Green Flash" an important edge in the competition. "We've grown up together hiking, camping, fishing, and backpacking," he says. "We study on our own whenever we can. We have a love of the outdoors—and we love the competition."

—Bill Sloan

Order of the Arrow offers special opportunities for service and leadership development

ROCKWELL MODELS ATTEND REUNION. In June 2001, The Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, Mass., hosted a reunion for individuals who served as models for many popular illustrations by the late Norman Rockwell. Above, Thornton Percival, of Suquamish, Wash., the former Cub Scout who modeled for two Rockwell paintings—"Boy Scout Hiking," featured on the cover of the 6th edition of The Boy Scout Handbook (1960), and "Saluting Boy Scout," for a 1959 U.S postage stamp—signs autographs for fans. Photograph by Michael Lavin Flower

The Order of the Arrow, Scouting's national honor society, offers Arrowmen numerous special opportunities to help fulfill the OA purpose of promoting Scout camping and developing in members "a life purpose of leadership in cheerful service to others."

• In the Scoutreach Mentoring Program, a joint effort by the BSA national Scoutreach Division and the OA, Arrowmen help identify and assist urban and rural Scout troops whose camping and advancement programs are below standard.

  Arrowmen act as a "positive change agent" by increasing advancement and camping opportunities for Scouts in urban and rural troops with struggling programs. Their participation also provides additional positive youth and adult role models and results in more urban and rural Scouts becoming eligible for OA membership. A three-patch recognition program is available.

• The Arrowman Service Award recognizes OA members "who go beyond their immediate responsibilities to help and guide others to new heights." The award, which may be earned for the years 2001, 2002, and 2003, focuses on three areas of service: personal, chapter/lodge activities, and general service to the community.
• Two special 14-day summer programs offer a combination of high adventure, service, leadership, motivation training, and instruction in wilderness maintenance and low-impact camping skills. Participants are expected to use their experiences to benefit their troop, chapter, lodge, and council programs.

The National OA Wilderness Voyage, in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, is under the direction of the U.S. Forest Service and run by experienced OA staff members from the BSA's Charles L. Sommers High Adventure Canoe Base in Ely, Minn. The first half of the voyage focuses on portage trail and campsite maintenance within the Boundary Waters; the second half is a canoe adventure chosen and planned by participants.

The National OA Trail Crew, at Philmont Scout Ranch in northern New Mexico, is under the direction of the Philmont Conservation Department and run by experienced OA staff members. The first week focuses on trail construction and maintenance; the second week is a backpacking trek designed by participants.

Details on applying for the programs listed and others are available on the OA Web site, www.oa-bsa.org. Information is also available from lodge chiefs or local council service centers.

European Camp Staff Program seeks applications from BSA Scouters between the ages of 18 and 30 have the opportunity to learn about Scouting in Europe by working as a volunteer staff member at a European Scout camp. All applicants must be registered BSA members and able to commit themselves to work for a minimum of six weeks. Those interested should obtain a detailed booklet and application from the BSA's International Division. The application must be approved by the person's local Scout council and then returned to the International Division for approval. Selection will be made by the administrator of the European Camp Staff Program. After an applicant has been placed, it is the responsibility of the participant to pay his or her own travel to and from the Scout center. The European Scout Region will refund up to 50 percent of the individual's travel costs. Additionally, the Order of the Arrow is offering a limited number of scholarships to Arrowmen, ages 18 through 20. This year's application deadline is May 15. For more information, write: BSA International Division, 1325 W. Walnut Hill Ln., P.O. Box 152079, Irving, TX 75015-2079

Spread the word: Share extra copies of Scouting magazine If your household receives more than one copy of Scouting and you don't need the additional copy, we suggest donating it to one of the following: a neighbor, friend, or co-worker; a school, church, or Scout unit library; a barbershop, hospital, or doctor's or dentist's office; or your workplace reception area. If you do not wish to pass the extra copy on to others, the remaining issues of that subscription can be deleted by sending a request to Scouting Magazine, P.O. Box 152350, Irving, TX 75015; or by going to www.scoutingmagazine.org and choosing Subscriber Services.

Contest promotes revised Traffic Safety merit badge As part of its Risk Zone campaign to raise awareness of the dangers of driving while fatigued, the BSA's Risk Management Service has produced a new Traffic Safety merit badge pamphlet (BSA No. 33391A). The revised book, introduced at the 2001 national jamboree, includes progressive new requirements that make the hands-on merit badge enjoyable for Boy Scouts and merit badge counselors alike. (Scouts who started working on the merit badge before the new requirements were introduced may complete the badge using the old requirements.) To help promote awareness of the Risk Zone campaign and the new pamphlet, the first 100 troops with five or more Scouts earning the merit badge before July 1, 2002, using the new requirements, will receive a $50 gift certificate for merchandise in the BSA Supply Division catalog or at a local Scout shop. For verification, copies of the blue Application for Merit Badge card (No. 34124A) for five Scouts from a troop should be sent to: Risk Zone Offer, Risk Management Service, S402, P.O. Box 152079, Irving, TX 75015-2079. Verification requests must be received by Sept. 30, 2002, to be eligible. For more information about the Risk Zone campaign, Scouters should contact their local Scout council district executive.

Program Resources by the Day, Week and Month JAN. 23 Bake a pie today. After noticing a decline in the traditional American art form of pie-making, pie-lovers created National Pie Day. For a listing of 200 pie recipes, see http://pie.allrecipes.com/default.asp. FEBRUARY Celebrate books and reading. February is Library Lovers' Month. You can hold a scavenger hunt there, looking for library-related items, or create banners or book covers for a display promoting your favorite books. For more ideas and free bookmarks, see www.calibraries.org/librarylovers. FEB. 15-18 Count birds. Help scientists and bird enthusiasts by taking part in the fifth annual Great Backyard Bird Count, co-sponsored by the National Audubon Society and the Cornell University Lab of Ornithology. Easy directions for counting birds in your backyard or neighborhood can be found at www.birdsource.org/gbbc, as well as resources for teachers and group leaders. Scientists use the data collected to analyze bird populations and monitor species in trouble. —Melanie Radzicki McManus

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Copyright © 2002 by the Boy Scouts of America. All rights thereunder reserved; anything appearing in Scouting magazine or on its Web site may not be reprinted either wholly or in part without written permission. Because of freedom given authors, opinions may not reflect official concurrence.

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