Direct Service E-mail News

DIRECT SERVICE'S EAGLE NEST

Join us in recognizing the following young men who have achieved the rank of Eagle Scout since our last newsletter:

CUBA UNITS PARTICIPATE IN ANNUAL CAMPOREE

Boy Scout Troop 435 located at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba recently sponsored a weekend camporee at Philips Park on the base. Joining in the fun were members of Cub Scout Pack 3401 and the base's Girl Scout troop. Parents and siblings were also invited.

The weekend's activities included instruction in various Scouting skills, first aid, land navigation, cooking meals over hot coals, a raingutter regatta, and a visit to a historic lighthouse. Each day was capped off with an evening campfire, that included story telling, skits, and songs. During the last evening, one of the leaders shared Scouting's history with the group and then ceremoniously tossed ashes into the campfire, explaining that the ashes came from around the world, dating back to Robert Baden-Powell's founding campfire in 1907.

CUB PACKS! SPRING ROUNDUPS BRING GREAT BENEFITS

The end of a school year is a critical time. It's when packs should open their doors and welcome all graduating kindergarten youth into Cub Scouting. The boys and their parents have now, after a seemingly long wait, become eligible to be Scouts and join Scouting's family. Their membership can become effective June 1, when they officially become classified as first graders according to the BSA joining requirements. Now is the time to focus your efforts to assist them in completing their membership applications and to welcome them as members of Scouting's largest family program, Cub Scouting!

Even if your pack does not hold the traditional weekly den meetings during the summer months of June and July, we all know the importance and benefits of keeping the group together with monthly pack outings and events. It gives the new leaders time to get to know the boys, interact with them and their parents, to get better acquainted with other leaders in the pack. They can do their online Youth Protection Training and prepare to kick off their regular meeting schedule in August or September. Monthly events meet one of the requirements for their unit to become a Centennial Quality Unit and earn the Summertime Pack Award. That award is one that everyone will be proud to display on their uniform and on the pack's flag!

DIRECT SERVICE LEADERS RECEIVE AWARDS

Robert Fagan has been awarded the District Award of Merit, which is presented to adult Scouters for their noteworthy service of exceptional character to youth within a district territory. Currently a Lone Scout counselor in Brazil, Robert has served packs and troops in Guatemala, Panama, Bolivia, Germany and several U.S. locations. We applaud Robert for his 20 years of service to Scouting.

The U.S. Department of Defense recently presented Ken Arlinghaus with the military's Outstanding Volunteer Service Award in recognition of his work with Cub Scout Pack 3401 and Boy Scout Troop 401 in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Because of this honor, Ken will also receive the BSA National Court of Honor's Community Organization Award.

Direct Service extends congratulations and heartfelt thanks to both Robert Fagan and Ken Arlinghaus for their dedicated support of Direct Service Scouts.

NEW UNIT JOINS DIRECT SERVICE!

Join us in welcoming Boy Scout Troop 2005, located in Luanda, Angola. The troop is chartered to the American Women's Association of Angola.

MIDDLE EAST CAMPOREE

By Richard Morris, Camping Coordinator Troop 813, Dubai, UAE

On a desert plain, next to Mount Rawdah, sheltered by acacia trees and visited by roaming herds of camels, the first Middle East Camporee 2007 was held March 15 - 17. The campsite, located in the Sultanate of Oman near an open border with Dubai Emirate, was attended by 128 fee-paying Scouts and Scouters and various younger siblings and friends. Dubai Troop 813 sponsored the event, but the original idea came from Scout troops in Saudi Arabia that are unable to host a camporee because of rigid visa laws. Capt. Victor Organ, Saudi Arabia Scoutmaster, together with Andy Mehta and Sheldon Edwards from Troop 253, Dhahran, were the people who urged Dubai to take the lead. Scoutmaster Bob Murphy, Committee Chairman Scott Butler, and Camping Coordinator Richard Morris from Troop 813 agreed to host the event, and a date was set a year ahead of the camporee. The site selected is only five miles off of the major east-west freeway across Dubai Emirate, but seems quite remote because it is located behind a towering mountain range. The cool lake behind a nearby dam provided a refreshing swim for the Scouters at mid-day after a morning of contests between the Scouts. Contests highlighting traditional Scout skills like knot-tying and fire building were interspersed with local skills, like the camel tick-spitting contest. (OK, they were really raisins). There was an orienteering contest and also a treasure hunt using compasses for a buried bag of delicious chocolate candy. A cooking contest resulted in some amazing food out of a backpack!

A truckload of scrap wood had been hauled in for a mega campfire the second night and the patrols winning the contests of the day were awarded first-, second-, and third-place commemorative ribbons as the bonfire lit up the natural amphitheatre where the Scouts were seated. A number of patrols entertained with their skits, and Capt. Victor, master of ceremonies for the program, got everyone up on their feet for a humorous activity bowing to a mythical Siam. Scoutmaster David Weeks from Abu Dhabi Troop 36 conducted an Order of the Arrow call-out assisted by present members of OA. The Scouts then retired to their own campfires that burned far into the Arabian night.

In keeping with the theme of the camporee "Back to Basics," the troops were encouraged to backpack over a mile into the campsite with the ever-present danger of wild camels and marauding Bedouins (well, sometimes Bedouins do drive their pickup trucks wildly). Jeddah Troop 454 actually backpacked to the camp in pitch darkness across the desert, and Doha Troop 970 backpacked in AND out despite the tight scheduling of buses and flights. One troop (Jeddah) spent the afternoon after the camporee back in the city at Ski Dubai snow area working on their Winter Sports merit badge, I am told. Each Scout received a commemorative patch for his shirt and a Middle East Camporee 2007 flagpole streamer in addition to the memories they carried away.

Troops in attendance were Safat, Kuwait Troop 938; Doha, Qatar Troop 970; Dhahran, Saudi Arabia Troop 253; Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Troop 454; Abu Dhabi, U.A.E. Troops 36 and 813. No major injuries occurred, but one Dubai Scout did require attention by former EMT Mark Gonzalez from Jeddah and then some stitches at a nearby village clinic.

Due to the fine preparation of all the troop leaders, the camporee was a great success and rumors are circulating that there WILL BE a Middle East Camporee 2008 hosted by another Persian Gulf area troop.

WHAT IS A CUBCAST?

The Boy Scouts of America's Web site recently launched a feature geared at helping Cub Scout pack leaders. This feature is available in an audio podcast, called Cubcast, and includes a variety of how-to and informative topics for Cub Scout leaders and parents. Recent topics include "Cubs and Bugs Galore" and "Camping Talk." To experience a Cubcast, visit www.scouting.org/cubscouts/podcasts to subscribe or download individual episodes.

UNITS DUE TO RENEW

It's time for the following units to renew their charters. Renewal kits have already been mailed out. If your unit is due to renew and you have not received the renewal kit, please contact Terry Meyers.

WHAT SCOUTING MEANS TO ME

By Mikail Desjardins, Eagle Scout, Troop 455, Jakarta, Indonesia

Over the past seven years, no matter which school I was attending or which country I was living in, I have always been part of Scouting. Scouting has not only been one of my most enjoyable extracurricular activities since I was seven years old, it has been a way of life. This is because Scouting has allowed me to explore the length and breadth of my own capabilities and has given me an outlook as to what I can achieve after I leave high school. The Scouting program is almost as challenging as a high school course. The required merit badges have inspired me to follow the Scout Oath and Law in life and the optional merit badges have helped me look into specific paths that I may want to explore during my life. Is has also guided me as I now aim for higher education and college. Having been a Scout and being given the honor of becoming an Eagle Scout will be a great benefit in my ongoing quest to better myself and to achieve a sound career path. Receiving the rank of Eagle Scout was not the end of the road, but for me the beginning of a greater journey.

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