Woggle Fest

SOMERSET – The wet weather did not deter people from attending Woggle Fest in their droves last weekend.

The event was part of the centenary celebrations of 1st Radstock Scout Group, and featured six bands playing throughout the day.

There were also side shows, a commando bridge, hog roast and craft competitions.

Councillor Rob Appleyard, chairman of Bath and North East Somerset Council, attended and had a go on the commando bridge.

Scout Jamie, 12, entertained the audience with a stand-up comedy routine, while members of the Old Bakery Artists group ran a painting workshop during the day.

Group Scout leader Janet Turner said: “We were looking to put on a celebration which involved all the community, and we are so grateful to everyone who made it a success: the musicians and entertainers who gave their time to help us, businesses who helped with sponsorship and donations of prizes, and Mitchards of Westfield who cooked the pig.

“This is an event which we anticipate will be repeated every year, and hope for more favourable weather next time.”

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Celebrating 100 years of the Eagle Scout Award

SUBDURY – The National Eagle Scout Association (NESA) Committee of the Knox Trail Council, Boy Scouts of America, recently held its 2012 Convocation of Eagles at Nobscot Scout Reservation in Sudbury celebrating 100 years of the Eagle Scout award. Close to 100 Scouts and Scouters from across MetroWest, more than half of whom were Eagle Scouts, gathered to mark the centennial. The evening was headlined by Eagle Scout, Maj. Gen. L. Scott Rice, Acting Adjutant General of the Massachusetts National Guard.

“It was impressive to see the wide range of Eagles who attended – from 1939 to Knox Trail’s most recent Eagle Scout – each one sharing memories of their ‘trail to Eagle,” commented Bill Downey, a Marlborough Eagle Scout and Chairman of the Knox Trail Council National Eagle Scout Association Committee. “Events like this not only provide an opportunity for local Eagle Scouts to connect and network, but to display that the Eagle Scout award, one of the Boy Scout’s most important traditions, is alive and well,” he said.

Eagle Scouts of all ages attended the Convocation, representing 74 years of Scouting. The longest tenured Eagle Scout in attendance was Stuart Eynon of Ashland who earned the rank in 1938. The youngest was Christian Slutz of Milford who became an Eagle Scout earlier this month.

“Eagle Scouts represent the highest ideals of Scouting in Knox Trail Council,” said Council President Brian Dingman. “The Knox Trail Council Board is very pleased that so many local Eagle Scouts have become involved in Scouting across the MetroWest region,” he continued.

The event began with a one-hour networking period during which the Eagle Scouts and their guests had an opportunity to reminisce about their Scouting experiences. James Chesna, a Marlborough Eagle Scout and long-time ranger of Knox Trail Council’s Camp Resolute in Bolton, provided an impressive display of Scouting memorabilia to highlight Scouting’s prestigious history.

Speaking before the crowd of assembled Eagle Scouts and their guests, Maj. Gen. Rice remarked on growing up in Boy Scouts and how advancing to the rank of Eagle Scout shaped his life and career. The acting head of the Massachusetts National Guard also took questions from attendees during which he candidly spoke about how his Scouting background resonated during recent deployments to the Middle East.

Christopher Anderson, a Hopkinton Eagle Scout, served as the Master of Ceremonies for the evening. Anderson, a current Master Sergeant in the Massachusetts Air National Guard, has been deployed three times during recent conflicts in the Middle East, serving under the leadership of Maj. Gen. Rice.

Members of the Massachusetts state legislature were also on hand to mark the occasion, including Sen. Jamie Eldridge, D-Acton, and Reps. John Fernandes, D-Milford, and Carolyn Dykema, D-Hopkinton. Reps. Fernandes and Dykema presented the group with a joint legislative resolution sponsored by Sen. Richard T. Moore, D-Uxbridge, and Rep. Fernandes, and co-sponsored by 85 other lawmakers, marking the centennial as well as the contributions Eagle Scouts have made to the community.

Paying tribute to Scoutmasters and Scouters who have positively influenced the Scouting movement, Convocation Chairman and Milford Eagle Scout, Sean Riley, remarked that “The ‘trail to Eagle’ is a personal journey; however, without the encouragement and mentorship of Scout leaders and adult volunteers, achieving this goal would not be possible.”
To close the event, Distinguished Eagle Scout Peter Casey encouraged Eagle Scouts to continue making their leadership and example count for the benefit of the community, and led the group in reciting the Eagle Scout Oath.

The Eagle Scout Award is the highest rank in Boy Scouts. The first Eagle Scout award was granted on Labor Day 1912 to Arthur Eldred of Long Island, New York. To date, more than 2 million have become Eagle Scouts including numerous distinguished Americans.

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Scouts’ Historic Camp $2.5M Upgrade

The landscape of one of the country’s oldest camps is about to get a makeover in the form of a new building — an addition that will begin with the turning of dirt today.

After several years of fund-raising, the Erie Shores Council of the Boy Scouts of America will break ground on its Centennial Leadership Center. The 11,000-square-foot building will house offices, offer space for programming and training, and create a home for the Camp Miakonda Museum.

“We wanted a facility that can be the inside classroom for the outside classroom,” said Ed Caldwell, scout executive and chief executive officer of the Erie Shores Council, which serves northwest Ohio. “… It’s a gateway to our 160-acre Camp Miakonda.”

Announcement of the center coincides with the council’s 100th anniversary this year. Organizers said the facility “represents the rebirth of Camp Miakonda as well as a place the community can utilize.”

Built in 1917, Camp Miakonda is the sixth-oldest Boy Scout Camp in the country and for decades has been a destination for youth and adults alike. Mr. Caldwell said the new building will offer even more opportunities.

The council for years has considered options for the site of its Centennial Leadership Center and had to look for a new home for its offices after the United Way building downtown was slated for demolition. Mr. Caldwell said the organization ultimately decided to use its own land to build an updated facility to use both as offices and as a program and training center.

As of today, the group has nearly reached its $2.5 million goal to build the structure. Mr. Caldwell said the organization still is seeking the final $125,000 needed.

In addition to offices and programming space, the building will house the first-ever storm shelter for the camp as well as an expanded Boy Scout shop. Plus, its location will be just off the main parking lot on Sylvania Avenue. The building is scheduled to be completed in June.

“We’re investing in kids, and we’re investing in the community. We believe that is central to our mission,” said Gary Hardin, president of the Erie Shores Council. “We’re very excited about this project. The point of the legacy center is that it is not just an office building.”

The Erie Shores Council serves 6,276 youths and has 2,300 registered adults who help run the program in Lucas, Wood, Ottawa, and Sandusky counties.

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Eagle Scout

On Aug. 1, 1912, Arthur Eldred became the first Boy Scout to earn the rank of Eagle Scout, the highest rank in the Boy Scouts of America.

Throughout the past century, more than 115 million boys have participated in Boy Scouts, and more than 2.1 million have earned the rank of Eagle Scout.

The Golden Spread Council, Boy Scouts of America, serves the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles. The council has recorded more than 4,000 Eagle Scouts from this region, with an average of more than 50 boys earning the rank each year for the past several years.

During 2012, more than 5,500 boys and young women will participate in scouting programs throughout Golden Spread Council. There are many requirements a Boy Scout must complete in order to achieve the Eagle Scout rank. He must first work his way through scouting’s other five ranks (each of which requires numerous badges, community service, leadership, and activity), be actively involved in scouting and earn 21 or more merit badges (including certain specified merit badges, like Citizenship in Community, First Aid, and Personal Management). He must also organize and execute an Eagle Scout leadership service project, which serves as an opportunity to implement the leadership skills he has learned for the benefit of an area organization other than scouting.

The national average of time spent on each Eagle project is an impressive 185 hours. Each Eagle project requires hours of preparation, develops leadership and character, builds camaraderie among those involved and benefits the community. A few of the agencies in our area that have benefited from an Eagle Scout project include The Salvation Army, High Plains Food Bank, United Way of Amarillo & Canyon and Habitat for Humanity.

Lastly, before his 18th birthday, the Eagle candidate must complete a final Scoutmaster Conference and Board of Review, both of which are designed to test traditional scouting skills, ensure good character and determine what the scout learned on his journey.

“Becoming an Eagle Scout was one of the guiding influences of my life,” said Bill Gething of Pampa, who earned the rank of Eagle Scout in 1947. He has continued to be active with the Golden Spread Council and has 73 years of consecutive scouting service.

Recent University of Texas graduate Andrew Altman said, “Being an Eagle Scout is not only an honor but a responsibility to continue exhibiting the values and ideals that scouting has instilled in me. By the virtue of being an Eagle Scout, I can honestly say that this achievement has been my foot in the door to many opportunities that I might not have otherwise had the chance for. This award is as widely recognizable as any honor society, military achievement or scholastic accomplishment, and it is something I will remain proud of for the rest of my life.”

Countless anecdotes suggest the experience of becoming an Eagle Scout changes an individual for life. Recently completed formal research backs up this belief.

Two years ago, Baylor University was awarded a $992,000 grant from the John Templeton Foundation to research the impact of scouting and the Eagle Scout rank. The study, “Merit Beyond the Badge,” found Eagle Scouts regularly held leadership positions in their jobs and community, demonstrated exceptional organizational skills, fostered positive relationships with others and contributed time and money to those in need.

This research gives credence to a frequently used phrase in scouting — “Once an Eagle, always an Eagle.”

Some of the most well-known Eagle Scouts in our nation’s history include: President Gerald Ford, film director Steven Spielberg, Pulitzer Prize winner Harrison Salisbury, EDS Corp. chairman H. Ross Perot, Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton and astronaut Neil Armstrong. In our community, we are blessed to have Eagle Scouts like Pat Hickman, chairman of the board of Happy State Bank; Mark White, managing partner of Sprouse Shrader Smith; and Ron Boyd, owner of Duncan & Boyd Jewelers.

Mayor Paul Harpole, a longtime support of scouting and past President of the Golden Spread Council, said “Our community has benefited from scouting for many years. It’s not hard to look to various leaders in business, church, community and nonprofit ventures to find leaders with a background in scouting, many of whom are Eagle Scouts. We’re fortunate to live in an area where boys are encouraged to develop leadership skills, further their personal faith and become participating citizens through scouting. I’m proud to be involved in the Boy Scouts of America.”

Looking to the future, the region looks forward to seeing the great things the future generations of Eagle Scouts will contribute to our community, nation and world.

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