|
Welcome to the Lafayette Link, a monthly newsletter for the Lafayette District. In each edition there will be information on what activities, events, and meetings are going on in the district and the Cradle of Liberty Council.
All words in blue are hyperlinked and will take you to more information on that topic. For anything not hyperlinked, stay tuned to the next Lafayette Link for more information!
|
|
|
|
Send the Lafayette Leaflet to a friend!
|
|
Lafayette District Leadership
| |
|
|
|
|
2015 First District Roundtable Meeting
By Alan Cave - District Roundtable Commissioner
|
When: Wednesday September 9th at 7:30pm
Where: JP Mascaro Building 2650 Audobon Rd, Audobon
Topics Include:
Fall Fest
Required Clearances
Membership Packets
A Brief overview of the scouting year ahead.
Come for the Fun leave with the Know-How!
See you there!
|
|
2015 Cub Scout Fall Events
By Tesha Omeis - Lafayette District Executive
|
Don't miss out on these exciting Cub Scout Events at Musser Scout Reservation this Fall:
Webelos Woods Weekend: September 26-27
This weekend trip is the perfect activity to kick-off the Fall for current Bears and 4th-grade Webelos! Scouts will get to enjoy a weekend at camp that will prepare them to be Boy Scouts and feel more comfortable in the outdoors. Throughout the weekend Scouts will participate in different activities that work on the new adventure tracks! Give your Scouts a head-start with this fun event.
Fall Festival: October 17, 18, 24, 25, 31 and Nov 1 - Registration Live August 3!
The Fall Festival is a family-oriented day that is aimed to feel just like a day of summer camp! Cubs and their siblings will have the opportunity to go around in a rotation enjoying their camp favorites, such as BB Shooting, Nature, Handicrafts, Archery, 3-man slingshots, a cooking demo, Scout skills, and fun fall activities!
|
What is District?
The Commissioners Corner
Ken Houseal - Lafayette District Commissioner |
WHAT IS "DISTRICT"? You receive email from whatever Lafayette District is but what is it? OK, you know what your Pack, Troop or Crew is and who is part of it. Probably a cozy little group of adults overseeing a bunch of youth earning belt loops, merit badges and maybe someday attaining Eagle Scout rank. Cool! But do you know exactly what YOUR District, Lafayette District, is and who is part of it? (Yes, "YOUR" is underlined and capitalized for a reason.) First, how about what YOUR District is NOT? Lafayette District is NOT a bunch of paid professional Scouters sitting behind desks randomly telling you what to do or not to do. It may seem that way from emails and phone calls. Read that again. Thank you. Now what YOUR District is and why "YOUR" is highlighted. YOUR District, Lafayette District, is a bunch of Volunteers, just like you! These Volunteers believe in the Scouting program and go above and beyond the Pack, Troop and Crew level not for self gratification but to provide service to you. Yes, provide service to you! This is what makes it YOUR (Underlined and Capitalized) District. It is YOUR people providing service to YOU. Want to know more? Read on, you may be surprised. There are usually between 40 and 50 Volunteers making up your District's leadership. These volunteers fill the District Committee positions and the Commissioner positions. There is one (1) paid professional Scouter, the District Executive (DE). In Lafayette District this is currently Tesha Omeis. Important Note - The District Executive does NOT "run" or "control" the District. The District, like the United States of America, is run by 3 branches of authority - The DE, the District Committee Chair, Brenda Shepperd and the District Commissioner, Ken Houseal. These three people are known as the "District Key Three". You as Unit Leaders are represented by 1 Professional and 2 Volunteer Leaders. Do you like those odds? I do! I could expand on the Committee Volunteer positions, the Commissioner Volunteer positions and your "Unit Key Three" however I will do so in further Commissioner Corner features in future Lafayette Links. What is more important is for you to know that you, yes, YOU can be a part of the YOUR District. The District is not a bunch of outsiders bossing you around. We, Your District Leaders are just like each one of YOU! Ken Houseal Lafayette District Commissioner (Yes, a Volunteer position)
|
Leave No Trace Trainer Course
Tesha Omeis - Lafayette District Executive | 
|
|
Training Update
Gerard Myers - Lafayette District Training Chair
|
Welcome back scouters, hope you all had a great summer. The weather was perfect.
Time to get the new Cub Leaders trained, remember all leaders need to be trained for their positions before recharter. Cub leaders can take training at my.scouting.org. Cub Leaders looking for additional information on the new Cub Scouting program can refer to Cubcasts on the scouting.org website (volunteer/training and scroll down to supplemental training courses.) We will be scheduling Youth Protection for January roundtable and Merit Badge Counselor training for December roundtable. University of Scouting is scheduled for December 5th at VF Military Academy, mark your calendars. I have done Youth Protection at Troop meetings for Scout Leaders and parents at the request of Scoutmasters, I will continue to do this as my schedule permits. At roundtable you will hear more about additional training opportunities such as IOLS, Baloo, NYLT and Wood Badge, hope to see you all there. As always we need more District trainers and unit training coordinators to keep everyone up to speed.
|
|
Eagle Scout Project Approvals
Ken Houseal - Lafayette District Commissioner
|
For Boy Scouts that are seeking approval for their Eagle Scout Project Proposal.
Please include in your email:
Your Name:
Your Scoutmasters Name
Your troop #
Your Email address and Your Scoutmasters Email address.
Your Phone Number and a good time to call you.
|
Scope Olympia
Ken Houseal - Lafayette District Commisioner
|
Hello Lafayette District Troop and Crew Leaders,
Scope Olympia is a fantastic opportunity for the Scouts of Cradle of Liberty to take part in an exciting and completely different Scouting experience. My younger son Andrew participated in two Scope Olympia exchanges, one to Canada and one hosting Canadians here in the US. I can tell you first hand it had more impact on his Scouting experience than even the One Hundredth Anniversary National Jamboree in 2010! It is the one Scouting activity that if he could he would do again. With that said, take a look at the attached information and really give it some serious thought. Andrew brought home tales of a long bus ride, Niagara Falls, new friends in far away places, traded Scout items that he still cherishes, and discovered Tim Horton Donuts, the donuts alone enough reason for him to consider moving to Canada!
|
|
Laurie Gibbons - District Merit Badge Dean
|
Merit Badge College is coming! Pending approval from the Spring-Ford School District, the date will be Saturday, January 30, 2016.
Now is the time for all the Merit Badge Counselors to start planning. The new PA state law is in effect, so all the counselors must have their background checks completed and uploaded in September to be rechartered. Look for an email from me soon. If you are interested in joining us, please contact me by email: laf.merit.badge@gmail.com All badge offerings will be considered if it is possible to do them at the school in January (Kayaking, Hiking, and shooting sports are definitely out of the question!) NEW COUNSELORS ARE ALWAYS WELCOME - you can team teach with another adult if you'd prefer. We also need additional adults that day to help check prerequisites, fill out blue cards, and be hallway monitors. Come help for a few hours! We always offer training for leaders throughout the day as well.
Watch the Lafayette Link for More Details.
|
|
Tim Little - District Program Chair
|
FIRST AID MEET WILL BE MARCH 5, 2016.
SAVE THE DATE!
This is a great opportunity for scouts to fine tune their first aid skills. Previous participants have said that it was a great chance to refresh their memory. The scenarios are created by Scouts for Scouts, and the make-up is realistic! It's a great way to spend a Saturday morning, close to home, and meet up with scouts from other troops.
|
What Happens when a Young Man and a Young Lady Go to work at Resica Falls Scout Reservation? Thomas Shaw - Lafayette Link Editor
|
In the summer of 2009 I was a volunteer at Resica Falls Scout Reservation.
While there I met a young man named Patrick Gibbons and Young women named Melanie Gabage. Both were in High School and loved working at scout camp.
Fast Forward 6 years, 6 years to this past Saturday and they were both at Resica Falls Scout Reservation again after graduating from California University of Pennsylvania. You will never in your wildest imagination guess why?
It may be your future Husband or Wife?
Nine of the Members of the wedding party were on staff at Resica Falls. You never know where the adventures of scouting will take you.
For this young man and his beautiful bride, it is the beginning of the next chapter in their lives. A life that began in scouting.
Congratulations Patrick and Melanie.
|
|
|
|
Scout neckerchiefs now approved for wear with nonuniform clothing
From Scouting Magazine.
|
One uniform piece unites Scouts in all 223 countries with a Scouting program.
It's not the button-up uniform shirt. It's not the purple World Crest.
It's the Scout neckerchief.
Look at pretty much any photo of a Scout or Scout leader from another country, and you'll see those rolled-up triangles. They're wearing Scout neckerchiefs even if they aren't in their full, official uniform (what we in the U.S. call the field uniform). And now, the BSA is joining them. Scout neckerchiefs, long a symbol of the movement globally, are now approved for wear by Boy Scouts of America members whether in or out of uniform.
When engaged in Scouting activities, members may wear the neckerchief with appropriate nonuniform clothing to identify them as Scouts.
Previously, according to an earlier version of the Guide, the Scout neckerchief was "worn only with the official uniform and never with T-shirts or civilian clothing."
Why the change?
- Removing restrictions for neckerchief wear brings the BSA in line with other members of the World Organization of the Scout Movement.
- The neckerchief, as recommended by Scouting founder Robert Baden-Powell, can be a tool for first aid. It can work as a sling, tourniquet or bandage.
- Scout neckerchiefs identify Scouts as Scouts, even when they aren't in uniform.
- The neckerchief looks cool - just ask Bear Grylls.
What one Scouter says
Dan Kurtenbach, a Scouter from Virginia, told me by email that he's thrilled with the move.
"The previous policy meant that you would hardly ever see a neckerchief at Scout outdoor activities, because you hardly ever see the official uniform being worn for active outdoor events," he writes. "With this change, it seems that the Scout neckerchief can be used for what it was designed for: practical outdoor gear.
"But more importantly, it finally allows boys engaged in outdoor activities to be recognized as Scouts, not just any old youth group. It allows us to take the uniform with us wherever we go and whatever we are doing."
Reminder
Of course, your regular field uniform and activity uniforms are still an important part of delivering the BSA program.
This option - wearing neckerchiefs with civilian clothes at a Scouting event - merely offers you a nice way to show you're a Scout when out of uniform.
|
 Your Pack, Troop, Post or Crew can be seen to in the Lafayette Leaf!
Tom Shaw - Leaf Editior | |
Would you like to see your Pack, Troop or Crew in this space!
Our publication does not take a summer vacation!.
Send us photos from your Camping Experience. Cookout or Family Event.
Your Eagle Courts of Honor, and your Service Projects to us for publication.
Email your pictures, articles, blurbs etc. to
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
