THE DISTRICT COMMITTEE AT WORK FOR YOU

 

 

MEMBERSHIP - Jim Poole

703-799-7046 or e-mail: Jim_Poole@nps.gov

 

Colonial District Cub Scouters

Plan Now For Your

 

1999 JOIN SCOUTING NIGHT

 

Are You An Adult Leader In A Cub Scout Pack?  If You Are, Then You Need To Begin Planning Your 1999 JOIN SCOUTING NIGHT (JSN99).  JSN99 will be Thursday, September 16, 1999.  JSN99 is the premier opportunity in 1999 to take the Cub Scout message to those boys in our community who are not yet part of the Scouting program and invite them and their parents to join the FUN! 

Scouting is for EVERY boy.  We need to do our best to ensure that every boy and parent in Colonial District is invited to join the adventure of Scouting, the one that will help shape the lives of those who are our future leaders of our communities and our nation.  On September 30, 1998, there were 937 registered Cub Scouts in Colonial District.  At the end of December, there were 1,363, or about 9 new Cubs in each of our 48 schools in the District.  On December 31, 1999, we hope to have 2,000 - this number represents 13 new Cubs in each school.  

 

Like everything else in Scouting, a successful Join Scouting campaign depends on our volunteers, those who are already in the program, who know what it offers to our youth and who will make the commitment to achieve success.  Each Cub Scout pack should begin planning now to invite all boys and their parents to an elementary school near their home to learn about Scouting and offered the opportunity to join a Cub Scout pack.  In the National Capital Area Council, it is the intent that every elementary school in the council be open on the same night - Thursday, September 16th.  If you are unable to conduct your JSN on the 16th, you should select a date that is closest to the 16th, but not later than the 16th, as registration forms are due on the 17th and 18th.

 

Join Scouting Night is a short, fast-moving session where boys and parents gather to see simple displays and to hear a brief outline for the Scouting program.  They will talk with adult leaders, fill out applications (parents, too), pay fees and get needed information about meetings and activities.

 

Join Scouting Night requires people to make it work well.  Each pack will need to identify a pack coordinator and one school coordinator for each of those schools where you recruit new Cubs (see list below).

 

The school coordinator presides at JSN99 program at the school, helps parents register the boys, collects the fees and turns the forms and fees over to the pack coordinator, who turns them in to Colonial District on Friday, September 17th or Saturday, September 18th.  To do a good job, these people need to be identified early and begin their coordination with their assigned school. 

 

The school coordinator has one more very important job - to make a classroom presentation in every classroom on the 16th and flyers to every boy who is eligible to become a Scout. 

 


National Capital Area Council recommends Join Scouting Night include exhibits and displays with Scouts in uniform and pictures of their activities.  Name tags should be provided for parents  It is critical to coordinate your use of a school room early with school authorities.  After conducting an opening ceremony, the school coordinator should briefly state the purpose of the meeting and describe the opportunities for Cubs and how parents can participate in the program.  Unit leaders should be introduced and given the opportunity to tell about the unit.  (Don't forget to invite a unit leader from your local Boy Scout troop to invite boys who are at least 11 to join the troop.)  You may want to organize separate meetings for parents and Tiger Cub leaders, Cub Scout leaders and Boy Scout leaders.  At these meetings, the leaders should emphasize the importance of the parent joining Scouting along with the boy, since Scouting is a volunteer organization.

 


NCAC also recommends that you provide information on the unit to include its leadership, meeting time and place, your chartered partner, Boys Life subscriptions, the program for 1999-2000, advancement and your Den organization.  You should conclude your JSN with a game for the boys and leave the school grounds by 9 PM.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

WHAT DO YOU NEED TO DO NOW? 

 

·         Select your UNIT COORDINATOR AND SCHOOL COORDINATORS right away!  Don't wait until fall.

·         Tell us who your Unit Coordinator is.

·         Call or send an email to:

Jane Sanchez: 360-9181, jsanchez@bna.com OR

Jim Poole: 799-7046, jjpoole@erols.com

 

Your Unit Coordinator should attend the Join Scouting Night Orientation on August 11 OR September 8 to pick registration forms and other materials to make Join Scouting Night successful for your Pack, but let us know NOW who to talk to in your Pack to help you make Scouting available to every boy!

 

The following is the list of schools in Colonial District needing a Join Scouting Night presentation this September.  Each school is paired to one Cub Scout pack based upon the recruiting area for the pack. 

 

NOTE: The pack is asked to conduct a Join Scouting Night presentation at its associated school or schools and to recruit boys for that pack AND for any other pack that the parent wishes the boy to join, at the discretion of the parent.  Packs chartered to wards of the LDS Church are not expected to conduct a Join Scouting Night but should redouble their efforts to enroll all eligible boys in their packs. 

 

Area 1 Packs:   Paired School(s) for JSN99:

 

129          Barrett Elem., Mason Elem.

133          Lyles Crouch Elem., Maury ElemP.

602          Alexandria Country Day, Saint Mary=s

609          Jefferson Houston Elem.

614          James K. Polk Elem, Blessed Sacrament, Patrick Henry Elem.

615          Ramsey Elem., Adams Elem.

801          MacArthur Elem.

1108        Cora Kelly Elem., Mt. Vernon Elem.

1515        St. Stephens (Lower School), Grace Episcopal, Immanuel Lutheran

 

Area 2 Packs:   Paired School(s) for JSN99

 

867          Bush Hill Elem., Franconia Elem.

871          Groveton Elem.

1076        Calvary Road Christian, Lane Elem.

1520        Burgundy Farm Country Day, Cameron Elem., Clermont Elem.,  Mt. Eagle Elem., Rose Hill Elem.

1943        Browne Academy

 

Area 3 Packs:   Paired School(s) for JSN99

 

658          Belleview Elem., Bucknell Elem., Quander Road Elem.

680          St. Louis Catholic School, Hybla Valley Elem.

888          Stratford Landing Elem.

1504        Waynewood Elem.

1509        Fort Hunt Elem.

1852        Hollin Meadows Elem.

 

Area 4 Packs:   Paired School(s) for JSN99

 

118          Fort Belvoir Elem.

876 & 977         Aquinas Montessori, Mt. Vernon Woods Elem., Riverside Elem., Woodlawn Elem., Woodley Hills Elem.

1503        Washington Mill Elem., Engleside Christian

1519        Hayfield Elem.

1900        Gunston Elem.                                  

 

DON'T FORGET...CUB SCOUTING IS FOR BOYS...

EVERY BOY!

 

 

 

 

PROGRAM NOTES - Mike Crane

202-404-8926 or e-mail: Mike.Crane@bolling.af.mil               

 

 

ACTIVITIES AND CIVIC SERVICE - Bill Stewart

703-642-8942 or e-mail: ke4bae@crosslink.net

 

 

Colonial District Fall 1999 Camporee

 

Friday, October 1-Sunday, October 3, 1999 Gunston Hall Plantation, Mason Neck, Virginia Planning Coordinator: Jim Garamone; 703/360-5692 -H; 703/428-0610 -W; jagaram@hq.afis.osd.mil -W.

 

Mount Vernon Encampment

The Spirit of George Washington Encampment  promises to be an exciting event that you won't want to miss. From Friday evening, November 5, to Sunday morning, November 7, nearly 1,000 Scouts and 150 adults leaders from troops, teams, crews, and posts across the council will enjoy two nights of camping and a full Saturday of program activities on the Mount Vernon grounds to help commemorate the life of George Washington. The Saturday program will include visits to the mansion and other attractions on the ground; opportunities to interact with re-enactors depicting Washington as President and Revolutionary soldiers; a special afternoon salute to George Washington in recognition of the 200th anniversary of his death the following month; and an exciting campfire with songs and skits from Washington's time.

Visit https://members.tripod.com/colonialdistrict1/SGW for information about this Council Camporee.   People who might be interested in working on the staff should contact Tom Baerwald.

 

ADVANCEMENT - Jeff Schweiger

(W) 703-601-1437 e-mail: schweiger.jeffrey@hq.navy.mil

(H) 703-461-9632 e-mail: jschweig@ix.netcom.com

 

Eagle Board Contact Information: The Chair of the Colonial District Eagle Board is John Tillery, who can be contacted at 971-8367 or jttillery@aol.com.  Contact John to approval of Eagle Projects prior to undertaking the project and to have an Eagle Board member assigned to serve as a member of the Board of Review once all other Eagle requirements have been met

TRAINING - Dominick Caridi

703-360-9206 or e-mail: DSCaridi@aol.com

 

 

SCOUTMASTER FUNDAMENTALS COURSE

 

REGISTER NOW for the fall Scoutmaster Fundamentals Course, the District's premier training course for all Scouters.  It's not just for new Scoutmasters or Assistant Scoutmasters: anyone active at the troop level, including committee members, will find it worthwhile.   This is the place to get the knowledge and practical experience to bring a successful Scouting program to the boys.   The course is a hands-on learning opportunity that covers essential outdoor skills as well as how patrols and troops are structured and operate.  There are three sessions: Thursday evening, Sept. 9 (7-10 pm) and Saturday, Sept. 11 (8 a.m. to 4 p.m.) at Aldersgate, and Friday-Saturday, Sept 17-18 at Ft. Belvoir.  It's a popular course and enrollment is limited so register quickly.  Contact Course Scribe Norm Johnson, at (703) 360-9206 or johnsall@aol.com, Course Director Dom Caridi at (703) 360-9206 or dscaridi@aol.com, or Boy Scout Training Team Leader Dave Stewart at (703) 461-7233 or dstew76798@aol.com.

 

JUNIOR LEADER TRAINING WORKSHOP

 

The District's one-day Junior Leader Training Workshop will take place on Saturday, Oct. 2, during the fall Camporee at Gunston Hall.  To enroll, Scouts should be at least First Class and have completed JLT in their Troop.  Participation is not limited to those holding (or expected to hold) senior leadership positions; the purpose of the course is to enable participants to learn and practice the skills which will enable them to be more effective if and when they assume responsibilities as elected or appointed leaders in the future.  However, since it may be necessary to limit registration, Scoutmasters are asked to rank their nominees.  (We plan a similar course at the Spring Camporee.)

 

Workshop Staff:  Each Troop is requested to nominate one or two senior Scouts (Life or above) to serve on the Workshop staff.  Solid leadership experience and presence is required; attendance at a previous JLTW session, at IMPESSA or at a similar course is strongly preferred.

 

Register Now:  For further information, and to nominate Scouts to participate or to serve on the Workshop staff, contact David Stewart, SM Troop 1515 at (703) 461-7233 or dstew76798@aol.com or Dominick Caridi, District Training Chair, at (703) 360-9206 or dscaridi@aol.com.

 

MERIT BADGE JAMBOREE

 

Save the date:  Saturday, February 26.   We want to offer a wide range of elective Merit Badges, including (but not limited to) American Heritage, Archaeology, Astronomy, Collections, Computers, Crime Prevention, Disabilities Awareness, Energy, Engineering, Geology, Journalism, Medicine, Metalwork, Photography, Public Speaking, Radio, Railroading, Space Exploration, Surveying, and Weather.   But we need your help now to make the Jamboree a success.   Which badges should be offered?  Can you (or another Scouter in your Troop) serve as an instructor or counselor or assistant for any of these badges?  Can you suggest others (teachers, professors, professionals) with the necessary enthusiasm and expertise to teach our Scouts?  Can you help with organization and registration?   Please contact Dave Stewart, SM Troop 1515, at 703-461-7233 or dstew76798@aol.com.  

 

Out-of-Council Training Opportunity 

 

The Baltimore Area Council will hold its Merit Badge Weekend on October 22-24 at Camp Cupertino.  In addition to Merit Badges, they will offer Den Chief training, JLT, First Year Camper, Youth Protection and other courses. Registration deadline:  September 15.   For further information, visit the website at http://www.eecis.udel.edu/~elloyd/scouts.html or contact Kenneth Krantz at (301) 829 5080.

 

  

 

V3 VIGNETTES

 

Venture, Varsity, and Venturing (V3) Vignettes

 

Venturing Roundtable

 

Beginning in September, the Colonial District will be offering a Venturing Roundtable in conjunction with its district roundtable meetings. The Venturing Roundtable will meet on the second Wednesday of each month, beginning at 8 pm at Aldersgate United Methodist Church at the corner of Fort Hunt Road and Collingswood Road.  Each Roundtable will feature one of the twenty-six Ranger core and elective requirements taught by Venturing advisors and outside consultants that work with Venturing crews.  Because of the similarity of these program activities to those in the Boy Scout and Varsity programs, Assistant Scoutmaster for Venture and Varsity Team coaches from ALL districts are encouraged to attend.  This initiative failed last year because the Venturing program was so new that there was not enough interest to keep it going.  Now, with the increase in Venturing crews and the demand for high adventure activities by all units, the Venturing Roundtable should fill your needs.  Please come and be a part of this new program!!!  We can’t do it without you!!

 

Venture Hike-O-Ree

 

Can you believe it!  We will be celebrating a milestone this fall when the 10th Annual Venture Hike-o-ree is held on October 1-3 and November 5-7, 1999 at the Northern Virginia 4-H Educational Center, Front Royal, VA.  We have already started receiving registrations and hike selections are made on a FIRST COME, FIRST SERVE BASIS.  September 20 is the cutoff date for final shirt count for the October Hike-o-ree weekend, so you need to get your planning done soon.  Registration forms are available electronically to coopwright@aol.com.  The cost of the Hike-o-ree is $12.00 ($13.50 for extra extra large shirts).  For additional information, call Cooper Wright, (703) 971-0044 (home) or (703) 358-2802 (work).

 

NOLS Wilderness Guide Published

 

The National Outdoor Leadership School’s newly revised and updated Wilderness Guide (Simon & Schuster $15.00) provides outdoor enthusiasts everywhere with the latest information on equipment and backcountry camping and hiking techniques.  Author Mark Harvey, a long time NOLS instructor and freelance writer, delves into everything from planning a trip to monitoring changing weather conditions, orienting a map, and preparing fresh-baked bread in a wilderness setting.  The new edition is a compilation of tried and true NOLS skills and methods tested and practiced by students and instructors for more than 30 years.  Each chapter begins with a brief overview and introduction offering a goal oriented outlined covered in greater detail throughout the chapter.  Subject titles include expedition planning, equipment essentials, what to wear in the backcountry, camping techniques, leadership skills, emergency procedures, weather, and even backcountry cooking.  My 1983 NOLS Wilderness Guide is pretty thumb worn and I can’t wait to get my new copy.

 

Wilderness First Aid

 

Two 2-day, 16 hour Wilderness First Aid Courses will again be offered by Christopher Tate, a locally recognized leader in teaching wilderness medicine and risk management.  Scheduled for the weekends of September 18-19 and December 4-5, 1999, this course provides an in-depth introduction to patient assessment, environmental emergencies, splinting techniques, and other topics.  The two days of instruction provide Wilderness First Aid certification.  Many Scouters from our district have completed this course and have found it to be excellent training.  Total cost of the course is $125.  Enrollment is extremely limited.  To reserve a place, please contact

Christopher Tate, 214 Duncan Avenue, Alexandria, VA 22301, (703) 836-8905 or visit http://wfa.net.

 

Spirit of the Mountains

 

If throughout time, the youth of a nation accept the challenge the mountains offer, they will keep alive in our people the spirit of adventure.  That spirit is the measure of the vitality of both nations and men.  A people who climb the ridges and sleep under the stars in high mountain meadows, who enter the forest and scale peaks, who explore glaciers and walk ridges buried deep in snow--these people will give their country some of the indomitable spirit of the mountains.

 

Justice William O. Douglas

 

 

Cooper Wright

Colonial District Venturing Coordinator               

Northern Virginia Venture Scout Coordinator                      home:  (703) 971-0044

      work:  (703) 358-2802

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

COLONIAL DISTRICT AWARDS

 

Special Commendation Certificates

 

Michael Bowman

 

Helen Garamone

 

Cooper Wright

 

Outstanding Chartered Organization Partner Awards

 

The Outstanding Chartered Organization Partner Award recognizes the efforts of chartered organization partners in the district to advance Scouting.  Chartered organization partners are nominated by unit committees, with selection of the awardee made by the district's "Key 6" leadership team.

 

Fairlington United Methodist Men

 

Aldersgate United Methodist Church

 

Colonial District Superior Scouter Awards

 

The Colonial District Superior Scouter Award recognizes outstanding service within Cub Scout packs, Boy Scout troops, Varsity Scout teams, Venturing crews, and Explorer posts in the district.  Units may nominate up to three individuals who have provided outstanding service to the unit.  The unit committee defines the reasons it believes each nominee should be given this award.  Based on unit nominations, awards are made by the district's "Key 6" leadership team.  Primary reasons for each individual's award are listed beneath her/his name.

 

John Ballenger                     Steve Jacobson   

 

Bradley Bailey                     Roger Lee

 

John Carlson                       Leonard Paul

 

Kenneth (Tracy) Evans         Keith VanderBrink

 

Steven Harkness                  Tom Waddell

 

Ian Hollander                       Nancy Woodward

 

Tommy Thompson Awardees

 

The Colonial District's Tommy Thompson Award recognizes outstanding service to Scouting in the Colonial District.  This award is named after Tommy Thompson, a beloved Scoutmaster and district leader from Alexandria, whose commitment to providing a high-quality Scouting program to young people in Alexandria and eastern Fairfax County serves as a model for those individuals selected for this award.  Awards are made by the district's "Key 6" leadership team.

 

William Jones                      William Stewart      

 

Lucy Mitchell                       Rita Trimarchi

 

David Stewart

 

District Award of Merit Awardees

 

Tom Baerwald                      Jim Poole   

 

Linda Hill                             Bill Wells

 

 

HEALTH & SAFEY

 

Lightning Safety Rules and Tips - Courtesy of the U.S. Scouting Service Project http://usscouts.org: by Don E. Robinson M.D.; Assistant Scoutmaster Troop 10 Cherokee Area Council, (TN-GA), Cleveland, TN.

 

Before Lightning Strikes...

·         Keep an eye on the sky. Look for darkening skies, flashes of light, or increasing wind. Listen for the sound of thunder.

·         If you can hear thunder, you are close enough to the storm to be struck by lightning. Go to safe shelter immediately.

·         Listen to NOAA Weather Radio, commercial radio, or television for the latest weather forecasts.

·         An AM radio will pick up static from lightning strikes in your vicinity before you see or hear them.

When a Storm Approaches...

·         Lighting storms are often announced by a sudden drop in temperature and increase in wind. The temperature drop and breeze are usually the result of a downburst of cold air. Once the air hits the ground, it has no place to go but outward in all directions. In the process, the cold air mixes with the warmer air at ground level, becoming a breeze and a temperature drop. Temperature will also drop from the air moving toward you through all of that cold water, in the storm, that is approaching. This can happen several minutes before it actually begins to rain.

·         Find shelter in a building or car. Keep car windows closed and avoid convertibles.

·         Telephone lines and metal pipes can conduct electricity. Unplug appliances. Avoid using the telephone or any electrical appliances.

·         Stay away from open doors and windows. fireplaces, radiators, stoves, metal pipes. sinks, and plug-in electrical appliances.

·         Avoid taking a bath or shower, or running water for any other purpose.

·         Turn off the air conditioner. Power surges from lightning can overload the compressor, resulting in a costly repair job!

·         Draw blinds and shades over windows. If windows break due to objects blow by the wind the shades will prevent glass from shattering into your home.

If Caught Outside...

·         The summits of mountains, crests of ridges, slopes above timberline, and large meadows are extremely hazardous places to be during lightning storms. If you are caught in such an exposed place, quickly descend to a lower elevation, away from the direction of the approaching storm, and squat down, keeping your head low. A dense forest located in a depression provides the best protection. Avoid taking shelter under isolated trees or trees much taller than adjacent trees. Stay away from water, metal objects, and other substances that will conduct electricity long distances.

·         Stay in the car if you are traveling. Automobiles offer excellent lightning protection.

·         If you are in the woods, take shelter under the shorter trees.

·         If you are boating or swimming, get to land and find shelter immediately!

Protecting Yourself Outside...

·         Don't take laundry off the clothesline.

·         Keep away from fences, metal clotheslines, telephone lines, power lines, pipelines, and any electrically conductive elevated objects.

·         Avoid hilltops, open spaces, isolated buildings, exposed sheds or other metal structures. Descend from ridges and mountains on the leeward side.

·         Don't handle flammable materials in open containers.

·         Don't use metal objects such as fishing rods and golf clubs. Golfers wearing cleated shoes are particularly good lightning rods.

·         Avoid the highest object in the area. If only isolated trees are nearby, the best protection is to crouch in the open, keeping twice as far away from isolated trees as the trees are high. Whenever lightning is nearby, take off backpacks with either external or internal metal frames. In tents, stay at least a few inches from metal tent poles.

·         When you are setting up a campsite in the summer-time, keep thunderstorms in mind. Don't pitch your tent close to the larger trees in the area, since these are the ones sought after by lighting. Be especially careful to avoid trees that have long vertical notches in their trunks, or have long, narrow strips of bark peeled from the trunk. When lighting hits a tree, most of its force travels down the moist area between the bark and the wood of the trunk. The bark gets stripped off when the resulting stream forces its escape, and the narrow vertical notches come about as the tree heals over the following years.

·         Go to a low-lying, open place away from trees, poles, or metal objects.

·         Make sure the place you pick is not subject to flooding

·         Stop tractor work, especially when the tractor is pulling metal equipment, and dismount. Tractors (including lawn tractors) and other implements in metallic contact with the ground are often struck by lightning.

·         Get out of the water and off small boats. If you cannot get out of the small boat (i.e., too far from land) you should position yourself as low as possible in the boat, preferably with your entire body below the line of the boat. Do not try to out race the storm to land. Also when getting out of the water go at least 100 yards away from the shore.

Be a Very Small Target!

·         Lightning takes the path of least resistance to the ground. Since air is a very poor conductor, lighting seeks anything better - and an upright human being is far better for its purpose than air! Stick up above the grass and trees while hiking, and you become a prime target.

·         Squat low to the ground. Place your hands on your knees with your head between them. Make yourself the smallest target possible. By squatting with your feet close together, you have minimal contact with the ground, thus reducing danger from ground currents.

·         If the threat of lightning strikes is great, your group should not huddle together but spread out at least 15 feet apart. If one member of your group is jolted, the rest of you can tend to him.

·         If you can't get out of the open, put your pack, walking stick, whatever, about 30 feet away from you, propped up high, and huddle on the ground.

·         Don't sit down, you make a larger target. Crouch down (between two boulders if possible) on your feet on top of your rolled sleeping bag, a foam pad, coiled rope or whatever supplementary insulation you have and ride out the storm.


·         Do not lie flat on the ground---this will make you a larger target!

After the Storm Passes...

·         Stay away from storm-damaged areas.

·         Listen to the radio for information and instructions.

If Someone is Struck by Lightning...

·         People struck by lightning carry no electrical charge and can be handled safely.

·         Call for help. Get some one to dial 9-1-1 or your local Emergency Medical Services (EMS) number.

·         The injured person has received an electrical shock and may be burned, both where they were struck and where the electricity left their body. Check for burns in both places.

·         Give first aid. If breathing has stopped, begin rescue breathing. If the heart has stopped beating, a trained person should give CPR.  

Learn First Aid and CPR

·         Take a Red Cross first aid and CPR course. Call your local Red Cross chapter for class schedules and fees.

References

·         The Guide to Safe Scouting (#34411) available from the local BSA Council Office.

·         Fieldbook, Boy Scouts of America (#3200)

·         All About Lightning, Dover Books, ISBN 0-486-25237; Martin A. Uman

·         First Aid merit badge pamphlet

·         Electricity merit badge pamphlet

·         Emergency Preparedness merit badge pamphlet

American Red Cross materials:

1.        Are You Ready for a Thunderstorm? (ARC 5009)

2.        Thunderstorms and Lightning...the Underrated Killers (ARC 5001)

American Red Cross General Disaster Preparedness materials for children:

1.        Disaster Preparedness Coloring Book (ARC 2200, English, or ARC 2200S, Spanish) for use by children 3-10.

2.        Adventures of the Disaster Dudes (ARC 5024) video and Presenter's Guide for use by an adult with children in grades 4-6.

3.        To get copies of American Red Cross Community Disaster Education materials, contact your Local Red Cross Chapter.