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Scouts Safety number 1
Welcome
to the Adventure of Scouting! Every
school year we, the De Soto Area Council, recruit close to 400 new
families into Scouting. Not only
are you part of the Boy Scouts here locally, but nationally as well. You are now part of the largest youth
organization in America. We have over a million volunteer leaders; some are brand new and some have been around for a long
time. Whether new or seasoned in Scouting, we all envision
our Scout learning about citizenship, fitness, leadership, good values and morals. Scouting is all of those
things and much more. Our Scouts envision shooting BB guns, archery, swimming, hiking, biking, fishing,
camping, and the pinewood derby. Those concepts are interwoven into the fabric of the Boy Scout and Cub
Scout program. Scouting is more than just another activity for your son. Scouting is
a year-round program. Your son can receive credit in Scouting for many of the activities he is already
doing . We want your boys to have success and be rewarded for the good things they are doing and working
on. Boys love to get recognition for their accomplishments. They
don’t want to wait to receive recognition nor should we make them wait. We believe in immediate recognition.
Every Tiger, Wolf, or Bear den meeting should conclude with a recognition program to award the beads the boys have
earned for either that meeting or that week. Once a month, a Boy Scout Troop or Cub Scout Pack conducts
an awards ceremony (Pack Meeting for Cub Scouts and Court of Honor for Boy Scouts) to recognize any big accomplishments the
boys have earned during the past month. Boys are highly competitive, so they want to be the best and earn
something every awards ceremony. Our goal in the De Soto Area Council
is to ensure that we are delivering on our promise to your son….to have a fantastic time in the Scouting program and
to do a lot of fun and cool things while building leadership skills, solid character, and morals. Recruitment We all love opening mail and seeing a card that says “You’re
Invited!” If your son’s friends aren’t involved yet, invite them to your next meeting.
Let them know that they are invited! We want all boys in the community to know they are invited.
Did you know there is a badge for recruiting another boy into Scouting? There is one, so make sure
you tell your volunteer leader about that too.
Camp, Camp, Camp The De Soto Area Council would like to thank
all campers, volunteers, and staff that made this camping season one to remember. The De Soto Area Council would like constructive
feedback on what went right, what went wrong, and how we can improve camp for the years to come. All feed back can be emailed
to hughwildebragg@yahoo.com or you can call (870) 918-0659. We look forward to seeing everyone next year! Journey to Excellence We
want to inform you of the new performance recognition program called ―Scouting’s Journey to Excellence‖ that replaces the Centennial Quality recognition program. As with any new initiative, the
importance of timely communication and training is crucial to proper implementation. Copies of the ―Scouting’s
Journey to Excellence‖ recognition forms have been emailed to each registered unit leader. If you would like a copy,
please let Sylvia Wray know.
Important Changes to the Boy Scouts of America’s Youth Protection Training Policies Recently, the Boy Scouts of America announced important changes to its Youth Protection
policies. The purpose of these changes is to increase awareness of this societal problem and to create even greater barriers
to abuse than already exist today in Scouting. EFFECTIVE JUNE 1, 2010: Youth Protection Training is required for all registered volunteers regardless of their position in Scouting.
New leaders are required to take Youth Protection Training before they
submit their application for registration. The printed certificate of completion for this training must be submitted at the
time as an application is submitted and must be done before volunteer service with youth begins. Youth Protection Training must be taken every two years. If a volunteer's Youth Protection Training record is not current
at charter renewal time, the volunteer will not be re-registered. Go
to http://www.scouting.org/Training/YouthProtection/QA.aspx to view answers
to some of the questions we have received about these important changes. To find out more about the Youth Protection policies of the Boy Scouts
of America and how to help Scouting keep your family safe, see the Parent’s Guide in any of the Cub Scouting or Boy
Scouting handbooks, or go to http://www.scouting.org/Training/YouthProtection.aspx.
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