A MOVING EXPERIENCE 

Dear Scouting Volunteers and Parents,

We recently returned from the national meeting of the Boy Scouts of America in Dallas, TX and in a word the meeting was moving. Not just because of the historic vote that was taken, also because of some of the speakers and events.

Just a few comments since everyone is by now aware of the outcome of the vote to allow openly gay youth in Scouting.   Your Council was represented in the voting by Dennis Gleason, Council Commissioner, Larry Healey, Assistant Treasurer and past Council President, Tim Felter, immediate past President and myself as your Council President. In addition, our Scout Executive, Kevin Nichols was present. Finally, Ron Fuller and his wife Ruth were in attendance. Ron was honored by being selected as the Scoutmaster Representative from Massachusetts and attended several special meetings along with Scoutmasters from the other states.

The voting process was very well handled. On Wednesday evening, prior to the vote on Thursday, an hour and a half was set aside to allow voting delegates to express their views on the proposed resolution. The comments were well said and the entire process was very orderly and polite. Listening to the presentations were over 1,000 voting delegates and approximately 2,000 others.

On Thursday, before the vote and during the annual business meeting, 8 individuals spoke, two from each of the four regions, some in favor of the resolution and some opposed. The resulting vote was 61% in favor of the resolution and 39% opposed. The resolution will become effective January 1, 2014. Following the vote, BSA National President Wayne Perry gave a very good speech about how we all needed to come together in Scouting regardless of which side we were on. In the end, Scouting is all about the youth.

A final comment regarding the resolution. Your Council conducted a survey in January 2013 to determine how members of our Council felt about the issue. Please note, this survey was conducted BEFORE the resolution was written. 2557 surveys were sent and we received a response from 19.6% which is quite high for a survey of this type. Of those who responded, 69.8% were opposed to the existing policy and 71.8% felt the policy needed to be changed. These percentages were very similar to the results from the BSA Voice of Scouting survey that was taken in February, again BEFORE the resolution had been presented.

Now, regarding the rest of the meetings. In addition to many sessions on Scouting programs and how to improve and better deliver them and the Scouting Trade Show/Exhibits, there were three large meetings with keynote speakers. First was the Duty to God Breakfast. Our speaker was Bishop Gary E. Stevenson, presiding Bishop for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, who gave a very moving speech about having a solid foundation in your life and the importance of God and being reverent in Scouting. He did one of the finest jobs I have ever heard to bring life into why God is key to the mission of Scouting. A number of Scouts were recognized and honored for their religious achievements in addition to Bishop Stevenson's presentation. Over 2,500 people were in attendance.

The second major event was the 2013 Americanism Breakfast, again with over 2,500 people in attendance and hosted by the National Eagle Scout Association. Our speaker was Bob Ballard, Ph.D., oceanographer and explorer. While he talked about some of the things he has accomplished including finding the Titanic, his main message was about the importance of education and working to accomplish your dreams and goals. In addition to Ballard's presentation two STEM awards of $50,000 and $25,000 were given to Scouts, and the second Eagle Association Eagle Scout Argonaut was awarded. The recipient will visit Ballard's ship, the E/V Nautilus. Very inspiring.

Finally, during the closing session we heard from several individuals who have made major donations to help get the Summit up and running. They included Joe Crafton, CEO of Crossmark, Inc who helped establish the Crafton Sportman's Complex, Douglas H. Dittrick, CEO of Douglas Communication Corp II who established the Douglas H. Dittrick Flag Plaza and Ed and Jeanne Arnold who made the Edward H. and Jeanne Arnold Logistics Center possible. These are just a sample of those who have made major contributions to the Summit and Scouting.

Our final speaker was Rex W. Tillerson, Chairman and CEO of Exxon Mobil Corporation and immediate past president of the BSA. He established the Rex W. Tillerson Summit Leadership Center and spoke to us about the importance of leadership, especially in the time of change.

All in all the national meeting of the Boy Scouts of America was a very moving experience. I am looking forward to attending next year's meeting in Nashville, TN.

Michael Jewell

President

Yankee Clipper Council, BSA