We are excited to announce that our 2^nd Annual Bay-Lakes Council Convention will be held at the Green Lake Conference Center in Green Lake, WI, on April 14-16, 2023. We will be recognizing all you do for the youth in Bay-Lakes Council. No matter your position in Scouting, there will be content for you. Friday night will open with a Kentucky Derby themed appreciation event. Saturday will continue with leader training, the Council Annual Business Meeting, District Award presentations and special recognitions, and so much more.

We are bringing in national caliber speakers to inspire you and there will be plenty of time for getting reacquainted with fellow Scouters from across the council! Visit our Convention web page for additional information. Registration will be forthcoming. We hope to see you there!

Bay-Lakes Council and the alumni of the Fond du Lac Scouts invite you to the 49^th Annual Winter Amidships! Youth participants must be registered members of the Boy Scouts of America (Troop, Crew, Ship, Post participant), Girl Scouts-USA, or American Heritage Girls ages 14+ (or 13 and have completed 8th grade).

This one day event will include activities such as a compass relay, knots, life jacket relay, first aid, international code flags, obstacle course, scooter relay, heaving line, bowling, tug-of-war, happy feet relay, and surprise events. The cost includes all events, dinner, an awards presentation, dance, and event patch. Before registering, please read the 2023 Program Packet.

WOW! Congratulations to all of our Scouts that participated in the 2022 Popcorn Sale. Over $2.56 million dollars of popcorn was sold by our Scouts. That is a whole lot of popcorn, but even more Scouting adventures. As this year's sale comes to a close, let’s highlight our top 10 selling Units and Scouts. Great job, everyone!

Perhaps the most recognizable symbol of Scouting is the Scout uniform. For more than a century, the BSA has utilized the Scout uniform to help create a sense of belonging. The uniform symbolizes character development, leadership, training in citizenship and personal fitness. It is hoped that wearing a uniform helps to create a sense of identification and commitment among both youth and adult members.

Join us in congratulating these recent Bay-Lakes Council Eagle Scouts:

Luke LaViolette, Troop 73 of Appleton, WI, Gathering Waters District
Logan LaViolette, Troop 73 of Appleton, WI, Gathering Waters District

Participating in a 2 1/2 day webinar, I felt “them” ripping from my ever-weakening death grip, the software program I’ve been using for decades. Just Great! There are all these new bells and whistles, but I don’t care that developer moved the toolbar from the top to the left side of the screen. All I want is to have my favorite tabs opened on the right half of the screen whose resources correspond to the main text on the left side. (Yeah, call them “tiles” all you want; and, yes, I will finally get my dual-monitor set-up up and running.) As my head spins from the intensity of the sessions, I am trustful that this new program will worth it.

No matter how comfortable we become, some one is always working to make it “better.” A new Information Technology team forces us to migrate from Word Perfect to Microsoft WORD “back in the day.” (I still miss the “reveal codes” function.) Daily use, multiple calls for help, paging through haphazardly-taken notes, and we can finally write again.

So, what “new stuff” will we need to learn/relearn to keep Scouting alive and well? New programs, improved current events, tried-and-true lovable. Whole books and seminars are devoted to making changing happen and accommodating it when others impose it. A “growth mindset” seems to be the first and most important vehicle to change. Over the years, we find some adjustments to be “easy,” others not so easy. Throughout, keeping that growth mindset has served us well.

The webinar leader is smiling as we begin another whirlwind race through learning. Surely, he knows something! Guess, now, I do too.

See you on the trail!

Warren Kraft
Program Development
guide@baylakesbsa.org

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