The safety of the Scouts we serve should be held above all else. Making sure that all adult leaders are Youth Protection (YPT) trained is one of the most important things we can do as a Council. YPT gives a leader the knowledge they need to help meet their leadership responsibilities for safe Scouting. By district, 50 to 70% of unit Scouters and other district members will have their YPT expire between now and year’s end. No leader is allowed to renew their registration with the BSA if they are not current on their YPT. The training is offered online and you can access it at this link. It only takes a little over an hour to complete. Please commit to renewing your YPT prior to November 1, 2022.

Will your Scout be the first to sell Popcorn in all 50 states?! The Bay-Lakes Council is going National with our Fall Popcorn Sale! Back again for 2022, we challenge you to join the 50 States Club! The first 5 Scouts who make at least ONE online popcorn sale in ALL 50 STATES will win a $250 Amazon gift card! And to get you started, we’ll give you the first 2 states for free! Pecatonica River doesn’t ship to Alaska or Hawaii, so they count as freebies! Follow this link for details.

Do you want to be trained on how to administer and counsel religious emblems? Join us for this year's Religious Emblems Training! Please join the team of individuals working with youth to increase their knowledge of faith and a desire to grow in their faith. If your unit does not have a counselor for Religious Emblems take the challenge and become the first! This training will be held via Zoom. The link will be emailed to you upon registration.

Among the most important collaborative relationships in Scouting is the relationship between a unit and its Charter Organization, yet it is also among the least well understood. When asked, Eagle Scouts often cannot identify their Charter Organization. Many families are not aware of the Charter partnership, particularly if they meet in a different setting such as a school or civic building. A Charter Organization is a community-based group whose objectives, mission and methodologies are compatible with those of the Boy Scouts of America. Many Charter Organizations are drawn from the ranks of churches, temples and synagogues, service clubs, parent-teacher organizations and veterans’ groups or other patriotic organizations, although any community-based organization can serve as a Charter Organization as long as it is willing to fulfill the expectations embodied within the relationship. This relationship goes much deeper than a sponsoring relationship, and in many cases, units have worked with their Charter Organization partners for many years, some for over a century! Charter Organizations share a commitment to serving youth and instilling the values embodied in Scouting.

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

Daniel Hewitt, Troop 346 of Negaunee, MI, Hiawathaland District

Fill in this blank: what was your reaction the first time you did _______? Pick up a gaming controller? Hiking that now-favorite trail? If you can remember that far back, riding your two-wheeler without training wheels and skinned knees, or driving on your own license? Regardless of where and how we choose to live out our lives, they are full of firsts and offer that whole range of emotional responses--from utter happiness to deep sadness. They are so much a part of our lives that oftentimes we miss their importance.

A "few" decades ago, the acronym DRIFT became a part of the business language: "Do It Right The First Time." To be honest, I still remember my dad telling me that with whatever project I was helping him. As a retired Human Resources director/personnel lawyer, I was intrigued by Russ Finkelstein's comment earlier this summer, "The act of doing something that first time enables us to believe it is possible for us to do it again." Which doesn't answer the question: what was your reaction?

For me personally, last weekend was one of those firsts: finally receiving medical clearance (because of the virus situation), I was able to return to scout camp on a programming weekend. Granted, weekday hiking around camp has its rewards, but nothing compares to being there with others with the same purpose, values and commitments. Even one sudsy overflow in the dishwashing room was not deterring this experience of reinserting myself into the full depth of Scouting. And, ask my lovely bride, I still am hard-pressed to express my reactions. Exhilarated? Grateful? Awed? Exhausted (after a day-and-one-half at the dishwasher?) Satisfied? Contented?

Actually, all of these and more. We often set a busy, sometimes furious pace for ourselves that we miss the actual experience. We try something desired the first time, and if we don't succeed, we keep pushing to get it right. This past weekend reminded me of many things, but mostly the experience of renewing long-held ties with people and establishing new friendships with those I had to simply meet for the first time.

See you on the trail, and for sure now, at Scout camp!

Warren Kraft
Program Development
guide@baylakesbsa.org

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