Troop 152 at Frontiersman Cabin

Last weekend was my troops campout at Camp Lowden to work on Frontiersman Cabin.  We got started at 9:30 AM and finished at 10:00 PM.  It was a long day and everyone did a great job.  Thanks to Mike McCleary for organizing the work date and all those from Troop 152 that came out to help.  We even had a special treat from Betty Miller who brought out dinner. We were able to finish the ceiling, insulation, and install an outdoor outlet.

Outdoor outlet added on the North side of Frontiersman.

McHenry County Distinguished Citizens Dinner 2010

Wednesday evening Blackhawk Area Council held the 4th Annual McHenry County Distinguished Citizens Dinner at Boulder Ridge Country Club.  The event honors a Champion of Youth from McHenry County.  They year Charie Zanch was recognized for her work in the community.  Charie is CEO of American Community Bank & Trust which has four locations in McHenry County.  Charie is A hard working civic leader that is active in many different organizations focused on youth in the community, one in particular is the Challenger Learning Center for Science and Technology in Woodstock.

The Master of Ceremonies for the event was Chuck Ruth, 2009 Champion of Youth, who did an excellent job of presenting the program.  The Keynote Speaker was Scott Brown who is President, CEO and co-owner of Sage Products in Cary.  Scott talked about his time in scouting and how important mentoring is to help develop our youth into good citizens.

Special thanks to Marty Smith, Dave Domek, Mike Domek, Mike McCleary, Lisa O'Neil, and John Trione for organizing the event.

Camp Lowden, October 30, 2010

Last weekend was the make up date for the wood cutting at Camp Lowden, thanks to Bud and Eric and their crews for working on cutting and splitting wood.

We also had a crew working on the staff cabin at Camp Lowden.  Three of the sides have been sided thanks to Matt, Chris and Mike.  Dave and Cindy were out working on the porch for the cabin.

Dave and Cindy working on the porch.

Matt, Chris, and Mike working on the staff cabin.

Camp Lowden Wood Cut Weekend, October 23, 2010

Well, as far as wood cutting went the rain won this one.  However, there was certainly enough work to be done around camp to keep everyone busy.  We had one team working on staining the siding for the staff cabin so it is ready to be installed next weekend.  In the process we got some of the maintenance building organized so we could have room for the stain to dry.

Staff Cabin Siding

Another group helped install the soffit around the Amerock building.  They got most of the building completed.

Soffit Crew working on Amerock

There was also a group that dug the holes and poured the cement for the porch for the staff cabin.

One of the troops that was out for the weekend helped organize the wood crib so we have room for the new wood next weekend.

Next week we'll be cutting wood, working on the soffit around several other buildings, and working on the staff cabin.  We could use a lot of help next weekend, no experience necessary.  It can be a big time saving just to have volunteers to carry the soffit or wood between the cutters and the installers.  Even if you have an hour, consider coming out to help improve the camp.

Thanks to everyone that came out to help.

AirCamp 2010 by Blackhawk Area Council

Wow! The AirCamp team did a great job.  I've been traveling since and haven't had a chance to post on the camporee.  There were numerous activities including a zip line, paint ball, and pistol shooting that the scouts were able to participate in.  Along with the camporee, the EAA Young Eagles offered free flights to some of the scouts.  We had about 4700 participants including over 100 units that camped the weekend.  We had scouts from several other councils attend as well and received some very nice emails from them following the event.



Mountain Boarding



Milk Crate Stacking

One thing that we often take for granted is the number of volunteers we have in Blackhawk Area Council willing to give of their time and expertise to help plan and operate an activity as large as AirCamp.  Many of the emails received from outside our council commented at how impressed they were that we were able to put on such an event.  There are many councils that don't even attempt something of this magnitude.



Before



After

The work toward what would become AirCamp 2010 started three years with council wide focus groups to decide what types of activities we would be conducting at the council level for the 100th Anniversary.  One of the activities selected was to have a council camporee.  About two years ago Bill Mugnai agreed to take the role of chairman for the event and spent the next two years recruiting a core team that consisted of Mark Broman (Program), Jim Behrensmeyer (Program), Marilyn Behrensmeyer (Finance), Jeff Moritz (Registration), Mike McCleary (Health & Safety), Tom Siefken (Communications), and Dan Banko (Logistics).  Ed Allen acted as advisor to the committee and stepped in to handle logistics when Dan Banko had health problems.  This group worked for two years to bring AirCamp to life.



Colonel Roosevelt Addresses the Troops



There were many other people who played key roles such as Fran Waller (Cub Scout Program), Ed Colson (Boy Scout Program), Fareen Parkitney and Eve Schroeder (Venturing Program), Chuck Natoli (Subcamp Coordinator), Alan Broadfield (Static Displays), Steve Pierson (EAA), and Bill Nattress (Arena Show).  All contributed a great deal of time to planning and conducting the event.  There were volunteers working at the airport most of the week before the event including Gene Barney who put in the poles used for the zip line and spar pole climbing and Rich Horn who marked out the entire site.  Not to mention the hundred or so other volunteers helping with registration, program, parking, etc.

Thanks to everyone involved in the event.

If you have any pictures please link them to the Blackhawk Area Council Facebook page from your home page.

Camp Lowden 70th Anniversary

A celebration was held for the 70th Anniversary of Camp Lowden out at camp today.  Steve Sarver, who's wife delivered their second child on Friday, organized the event.  It was a great day as the weather had cooled from the hot summer temperatures of summer camp and it was a bright, sunny day.  There were staff alumni from Tennessee, Kansas, and Michigan in attendance.  Staff from as far back as the 1940s were there.  In conjunction with the event, Steve has completed a new edition of the Camp Lowden history that I'm looking forward to going through and a couple of picture books that can be ordered.  Thanks to Russ and Sue Sarver for doing registration and Jef Heckinger who got a lot of new scouting alumni registered.

1940s Camp Lowden Staff

1950s Camp Lowden Staff

1970s Camp Lowden Staff

1980s Camp Lowden Staff

1990s Camp Lowden Staff

2000s Camp Lowden Staff

Extreme Service Project – Blackhawk Area Council Anniversary Event

Last Saturday was the date of the Extreme Service Project conducted by the Order of the Arrow, Walupeju Lodge chapters as one of our council 100^th anniversary events.  Since community service is a big part of the Boy Scouts of America it made sense that one of our anniversary events would be a day of community service.  There were five different locations where local OA chapters arranged for service projects.  In White Eagle District, the Mawat Chapter organized a group to work on the perimeter trail around Camp Lowden.

In Wetassa District, the Wetassa Chapter organized a clean up of Krape Park in Freeport.

In Wanchanagi District, the Gokos Chapter organized a clean up of Klehn Aboretum in Rockford.

In Sycamore District, the Kishwaukee Chapter organized two projects, one at Marengo Woods and the other at The Hollows, both McHenry County Conservation District sites.

All together there were hundreds of scouts and their families that came out to help with the projects.

Patches commemorating the event are available for order, please contact me directly if you would like to have some ordered for your unit.

I also had an event flag that traveled to each site and was signed by participants.  If you did not get a chance to sign the flag and want to borrow it for a unit, district, or chapter event contact me and we can arrange for you to borrow the flag.

2010 National Scout Jamboree

It's been a while since I posted to the blog.  Just too much going on.  I thought I'd start with the National Scout Jamboree held at Fort A.P. Hill in Virginia.  This is supposed to be the last Jamboree at A.P. Hill.  In 2013 it is moving to the BSA owned high adventure camp called The Summit.  The Jamboree was a lot of hard work by the volunteers but all of the scouts I talked with had a great time.  

My job at the Jamboree was as one of the team of commissioners in Honest Abe, Subcamp 10.  We were tasked primarily as working with the troops within the subcamp to provide information an help with issues they may have.  For several days prior to the scouts arrival we had to take the area allocated for Subcamp 10 and mark off all of the campsites.  They were already mapped out but translating the map to actual placement isn't easy.  It took three days working in humid, 100 degree days with heat indexes aver 115.  You get used to the heat, but what made this more difficult was they ran out of food for lunch and when we went to dinner there were hour long lines.  Fortunately I still had my car and we were able to drive into town to get something to eat that day and the next.  Below is what Subcamp 10 looked like just before the scouts arrived.

Arrival day is the second hardest day.  We have to be careful moving buses and trucks through congested areas with scouts setting up camp.  It's an all day event.  Once the troops we give them some initial information, like where the bathrooms are located, and leave them to get set up.  We go back later in the day to help them along with the check-in procedures.

Blackhawk Area Council had a number of scouters on staff.  We managed to get one picture that had most of the group including the Guatemala patrol.

As I always tell the scouts, there is much more to do at the Jamboree than you can do in the ten days you are there.  I only managed to get to a few places.  They Actions Alley staff opened the zip line for adult leaders and staff one evening, that was fun.  I was at the NESA tent when the national president, Rex Tillerson.

We had nightly stage shows right across the street from Subcamp 10.  Bill Mugnai worked on the stage which had a variety of entertainment all week that was pretty good.  Indian dancers came out one evening.

The arena shows were a big hit.  The closing show, which was broadcast as the Shining Light, in particular.  That is the one Mike Rowe spoke at and gave a great speech that is available at http://www.ustream.tv/shininglight.  The estimates were between 75k-80k participants in the arena that night all waving U.S. flags, it was very moving.

Another activity was the Conservation Area that had local and national conservation groups including its own Jamboree National Forest.

Move out day was our busiest day as commissioners.  There is a big rush to leave with all of the buses and trucks trying to get in at the same time.  On top of that it rained for only the second time during the Jamboree. A lot of the troops had already taken their tents down and were sleeping under the stars/clouds.  We had a lightening warning around 3 a.m. so we got most of the troops into the dining and commissary tents.  The lightening never developed but it rained all morning until about 9:00.  Because we couldn't get the buses and trucks into the campsites it created a big traffic jam on the roads, eventually everyone managed to get out.

Then the long process of leaving started for us.  We packed and at noon I got a ride to pick-up my car from the storage lot; me and a thousand other staffers.  It took over two hours before I could get my car out of the lot and get back to the campsite.  Just as I arrived they were towing the bathrooms away and had disconnected the showers.  So much for getting cleaned up before we started the long drive back.  We did manage to get into one of the barracks and use the showers there.  It was close to 5:00 PM before we left A.P. Hill for the last time.

On the way back Dan Banko, Ed Allen, and I took a side trip to see The Summit, the new BSA high adventure area and future home of the National Jamboree.  Here is what it looks like today.  What you don't see is the security guards that are there to keep scouters like us out which there is construction going on.

Wood Badge, Tour de Blackhawk, Camp Properties Workshop, Training, Jamboree

Lots of activity this past weekend.  On Friday Ed and I were at the Wood Badge Staff Development held at the Boeger Leadership Lodge to practice our presentation on Scouting Generations.  A new session that deals with understanding the differences between the various generations represented by our volunteers.

Saturday morning I had breakfast with John Wurtzel to discuss the stage show for the Tour de Blackhawk on June 11-13.  It should be a good show.  If you haven't signed up yet you'll want to get your units registered at http://www.blackhawkscouting.org/2010Events/TourDeBlackhawk/TourDeBlackhawk.htm.  Besides having rides available from 8 to 100 miles there are three bike rodeos planned along the trials for Cub Scouts to participate in.

Next was a session at Pecatonica High School to plan the future of our camps.  We are gathering information to update our strategic plan as well as other plans for the camps.  We had over 30 volunteers participate in the session which lasted into the afternoon.  Thanks to Bob Gingras for organizing the session.

Then it was back to Camp Lowden where I got to stop by and visit with a large group that was taking the BALOO (Basic Adult Leader Outdoor Orientation) and WLOT (Webelos Leader Outdoor Training) and with some of our Jamboree participants.  The big event was the Wood Badge Reunion Dinner that saw 100 of our past and future Wood Badge trained volunteers come out to catch up with one another at the Boeger Leadership Lodge.

Adventure Base 100 & Canyon Camp Work Day

Another busy weekend last week.  It started with a bus ride into Chicago to support the Adventure Base 100 stop at Douglas Park.  Steve James helped organize the Blackhawk Area Council contingent.  We received compliments from the Chicago Area Council staff both the number of volunteers and how we handled things.  I received an email that showed the Chicago stop had the second highest turnout behind only the Pasedena Rose Parade stop over New Years.  There was just shy of 13k visitors.  Great job by everyone involved.

As it turns out the requirements for another new merit badge, Scouting Heritage, were just released and a visit to Adventure Base 100 meets one of the requirements.  So those Boy Scouts that came out to visit or help have a start on earning that merit badge.

Last weekend was also the Canyon Camp work day sponsored by the Monroe Kiwanis.  I was out on Sunday and helped finish up the new tent platforms that were started on Saturday.  They had over 50 people out on Saturday and got a lot of work done.

This weekend is also a busy weekend with the Camp Properties Workshop, BALOO & WLOT training sessions, Jamboree Shakedown, and the Wood Badge Reunion Dinner.  I hope to see some of you around.