RememberSchiff

@JohnNovack welcome to scouter.com. To be fair, I edited your post as I was unable to verify the information you presented. - RS

@MattWoodson welcome to scouter.com

I would hope a more accurate description would take hold. The offender is now an expelled/dismissed/defrocked Eagle Scout who can never again be a member of Scouting, BSA.

Update 7/6/2019: The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio is seeking help finding the victims of a Boy Scout official accused of taking video of children changing. Thomas Close, 40, of Shelby, is currently facing charges of sexual exploitation of children and receiving and distributing child pornography in locations that included Sandusky and Wakeman, according to court documents. The U.S. Attorney’s Office is now asking anyone who suspects they or their children were recorded by Close to email their contact information to Homeland Security Investigations at HSI-CLOSE-Investigation@ice.dhs.gov and attach a photo of the child in question that was taken around the years Close would have access to the child, according to a news release According to an affidavit filed in the case: Homeland Security Investigations agents received information from the Cyber Crimes Center regarding videos taken of minor boys changing before or after swimming at the YMCA in Sandusky. A review of several videos revealed they were recorded at the YMCA facility in Sandusky, which sometimes rented its pool to the Boy Scouts, inside teepees used at the Firelands Scout Reservation in Wakeman, as well as inside the bathroom of a home that appeared to have a swimming pool. Investigators met with Boy Scouts of America officials in Cleveland (Aug, 2018 - RS ), whose area includes seven counties. Due to the fact that all of the photos appear to revolve around changing before or after swimming, Boy Scout officials alerted investigators to an incident report from June (2017 - RS) documenting an occurrence at the Firelands Scout Reservation they felt could be related, the release said. The report was made by a den leader regarding a Boy Scouts of America staff member named Thomas Close, also known as “Aqua Joe,” according to the affidavit. Source: https://www.morningjournal.com/news/crime/u-s-attorney-seeks-victims-of-sandusky-wakeman-boy-scout/article_df9977ba-9f47-11e9-aa90-1f0f81ab9192.html

Not that I am aware. Maybe as a start, anyone designated an Ineligible Volunteer ("Perversion Files") and is found to be an Eagle has that rank rescinded? My $0.02,

@SM101 Welcome to scouter.com

Back in the day, I don't remember such a plaque. At the end of the trail, we bought Philmont belts with the iconic buckle.

I found this news story about starting a Ship, please add posts regarding starting a Ship. Eagle Scout Bill Murphey has been involved with the Boy Scouts of America since the 1970s...Growing up on the Jersey Shore, Murphey has also put in more than 40 years on the water, sailing and racing on the Barnegat Bay. He always wondered why there had never been a Sea Scouts chapter established on the South Jersey shore. Recently, Murphey found a prophesy in a box of his grandfather’s memorabilia, where he discovered photos of his great uncle, John Wood, a sea scout in North Jersey. The photographs were of a cruise Wood took with Sea Scout Ship 117 in the year 1914. Coincidentally, Murphey’s junior sailing group at the Barnegat Bay Yacht Club is group 117. So, when Capt. Pat Geiger reached out to recruit him to a Sea Scouts ship in Little Egg Harbor, Murphey climbed aboard with enthusiasm, suggesting they take on the augural ship number. “I thought, someone’s going to lead this ship, and it might as well be me,” Murphey chuckled. Just like that, he became skipper of Sea Scout Ship 117, which comprises about a dozen male and female scouts and, according to Geiger, will be chartered by the West Creek Volunteer Fire Co. Geiger stated that Eagle Scouts Todd and Paul Lund had done most of the work, and were already holding meetings before recruiting any adults. “Pretty impressive for our local Eagle Scouts,” Geiger praised. The scouts elected Geiger as their executive officer, Todd Lund Sr. as committee chairman, Virginia Lund as treasurer, and named several mates including Lou Foster and Capt. Robert Meseck. ... continued with history, crew interviews, and program at news source: https://www.thesandpaper.net/p/all-aboard-teens-form-first-sea-scouts-chapter-in-ocean-county/1819868 P.S. According to First Mate Foster, the ship is responsible for organizing and executing a long cruise. Their first goal is a 14-mile cruise to Atlantic City on Independence Day. If they achieve this goal, they will sail out to Atlantic City, tie up to watch the fireworks, and sail back. Murphey said he expects overnight trips by this August.

Update on construction of 2,800 acre Camp Strake which is near Huntsville, TX at edge of Sam Houston National Forest. Scheduled to open summer 2020. 28 acre man-made lake STEM center, 450 seat dining hall, 9000sq ft Grand Pavilion, total of 66 structures photos, including aerial photo https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/bizfeed/article/Construction-progresses-at-Camp-Strake-campsite-14063649.php

Charles McGee turned 22 on the day the U.S. entered World War II. At the time, he was an engineering major at the University of Illinois. Eleven months later, McGee left Champaign-Urbana for Alabama to train with a group of Army Air Corps cadets who would become some of the first black fighter pilots in the country, now known as the legendary Tuskegee Airmen. He went on to fly 136 combat missions in WWII with the all-black 332nd Fighter Group, also known as the “Red Tails.” Later, he commanded fighter-bomber, support and training squadrons and was the first black commander of a stateside Air Force wing and base. When he retired as a colonel after a 30-year Air Force career, McGee had a total of 6,308 flight hours — 1,151 of those in combat — and had completed 409 combat missions in three wars, a record that still stands. And, he’s the only fighter pilot to have flown 100 or more combat missions in WWII, Korea and Vietnam. McGee excelled in school and was active in Boy Scouts, later earning the rank of Eagle Scout. ... When retired U.S. Air Force Col. Charles E. McGee speaks to young people as an ambassador of the legendary Tuskegee Airmen, he encourages them “to ignore negativity, rise above their challenges and follow their dreams.” McGee — who completed 409 combat missions in World War II and the Korean and Vietnam wars — says he does that by sharing his story and talking about the four P’s. Prestige. “Dream your dreams, Find what your talents are and what you like doing. You don’t want to go to work every day and not enjoy it. Prepare. “Learn to read, write and speak well. Get your education and develop those talents you discovered.” Perform. “Always do your best and have excellence as your goal.” Persevere. “Don’t let the circumstances be an excuse for not achieving. More more at source: https://www.news-gazette.com/news/trailblazing-tuskegee-airman-life-s-been-a-blessing/article_56ac9194-007d-59d2-bf4c-0ccab3ea87f1.html Scout Salute,

We moderators are still discussing this locked topic... in a scoutlike way. Meanwhile, a local council named their annual Distinguished Citizen, attorney Thomas Rath. Noting the Scout motto’s attention to good citizenship and moral character, Rath said the country as a whole needs to pay attention. We are, he said, in a dark place, where civil discourse has been replaced by discord. ...we know better and can do better in terms of conducting ourselves ... That can start at the next town meeting, or the next school board meeting, he said. He cited both Republican and Democrat lawmakers in New Hampshire who have been able to disagree without being disagreeable and have being able to work together as a result. Inspiring words, those, and very much needed. Congratulations to Rath and to the Daniel Webster Council for continuing to prepare Scouts “to do my best to do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout law; to help other people at all times; to keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight.” https://www.unionleader.com/opinion/editorials/we-know-better-inspiring-words-at-boy-scout-event/article_a85cb44e-35a0-5a48-902e-234cfc1338a8.html RS

Source: http://www.wrde.com/news-article/9232.htm

Update June 26, 2019: ...Eight-year-old scout Alex Ostendorff recalled seeing the lightning from his parents’ vehicle. “When the lighting struck, it was more like an explosion than a bolt … and then there was a lot of steam,” he said. “It looked like a bomb went off.” “After it struck, it kind of put our car up on two wheels,” he added. Although Alex said he thinks he may camp again, he doesn’t want to go back to Balsam Mountain Campground. “It scared me very much,” he said. “I cried I was so scared.” “After that, when I went home, I couldn’t get the vision out of my head, and it was really scary,” he added. Dave Crowder and Cubmaster Blair Bishop were in Bishop’s truck when the lightning struck. Crowder, a Marine Corps veteran, said the sound and the flash of light was akin to a mortar round exploding. Bishop agreed, adding that it arced overtop of the truck. “The frame is bent where the lightning hit my truck … and the tires were melted in places,” he said. “It appeared that it blew the asphalt out of the ground.” Likewise, Crowder saw the sheer power of the bolt another way. “Her umbrella, part of it was just vaporized,” he said of the mother who was injured. Once Crowder noticed Wijewickrama and the mother had been hit, his instincts kicked in, and once he saw the mother come to her feet under her own power, he applied first aid to Wijewickrama. “I went to check Roy’s pulse, and his jacket was wrapped around his neck so I cut that off,” he said. “He started talking, so obviously he was breathing. Then we got him up on his feet.” Wijewickrama was reaching for his truck’s door when the lightning struck. Had he been in contact with the truck, he likely wouldn’t have survived the incident. Cell reception in the remote Heintooga area is spotty, so it was quicker for cub scout parents to evacuate the victims themselves than call an ambulance and wait for it to get there. Within minutes, Bishop was driving Wijewickrama to the Haywood Regional Medical Center in Crowder’s truck, and not long after, Crowder used his wife’s car to take the injured mother and members of Wijewickrama’s family to the hospital, as well. Once he had cell reception, Crowder called the hospital to let them know they would be receiving two victims injured in the lightning strike. Wijewickrama was transferred to Mission Hospital, where he is still being held. Both are expected to recover. More at source: https://www.themountaineer.com/news/witnesses-recall-horrific-lightning-strike-incident/article_44c1c2f2-9744-11e9-ba25-dbeb0b53356e.html

Well done Brian!

@Natgeo2019 welcome to scouter.com

@astrila welcome to scouter.com

You might hear cheers for the two Grand Marshalls https://kxlf.com/news/montana-news/2019/06/22/eagle-scouts-help-save-mans-life-in-great-falls/

@SteveMM welcome to scouter.com

Consider the story of scout Joseph Barefoot who is now a freshman at the University of Tennessee. From the University of Tennessee website: Joseph Barefoot doesn’t seek attention for himself, but his actions to save a friend in a 2009 boating accident couldn’t keep him out of the spotlight. His heroic efforts and brush with death earned him a top Scouting award and recognition in Boys’ Life magazine and National Eagle Scout Magazine. As a UT Martin freshman, Joseph is receiving more positive attention as a key newcomer on the Skyhawk rifle team. Born in Sudbury, Ontario, and homeschooled full time when he reached 10th grade, Barefoot split time living in Pennsylvania and Canada. His parents, Art and Brenda, own and operate the Bear’s Den Lodge, a hunting and fishing resort located on the Northeast Georgian Bay in Ontario. His surroundings nurtured a love for outdoor activities such as hunting and fishing. He participated in baseball and basketball before turning his attention to rifle in high school. “I didn’t have to be strong or fast. I didn’t have to be tall or anything else,” he said. “I just had to be able to stand still and shoot 10s.” It’s maybe an understatement to say that Joseph is also accomplished in Scouting. He became an Eagle Scout in 2008 and has earned 12 palms or more than 100 badges. Not having a troop to join, he participated as a Lone Scout, and his parents were the troop leaders. “In some ways, it helped me get the badges done sooner, but in other ways, I did not get to do all the same group activities all year round like other troops would be able to do,” he said. “But … I was an international Lone Scout, which allowed me to not only be a Boy Scout of America, but I was also a Boy Scout in Canada and reached the rank of Chief Scout, which is its equivalent for the Eagle Scout.” All of Joseph’s survival skills learned as a Boy Scout came into play in August 2009 during a fishing trip on Ontario’s French River with friend and mentor, Dr. John Ryan. As they fished through the day, they approached a waterfall in an area called the Sturgeon Chutes. The waterfall caused a 35-foot-deep whirlpool in front of the falls. Rock walls were on either side, and water flowed around a small rock pile in the middle, a good place to fish for muskies. While standing on the front of the boat, John hooked and lost a large muskie. He convinced Joseph to drop back into calmer water, trade places and try to re-hook the fish while John maneuvered the boat between the rock pile and wall. He took the boat too far; a surge hit the boat and slammed it into the right rock wall. John accidentally moved the boat forward instead of reverse, they hit the waterfall, and then they struck the left rock wall, spinning the boat in circles. In the confusion, Joseph was able to pull on his life jacket, but when John reached to put his on, the boat flipped over. Joseph went to the bottom, managed to swim to the surface, grabbed some rocks on the right side and held on. But, he lost strength, and a surge went over his shoulders and pried him away from the rocks. “I remember spinning around and seeing the waterfall one last time before I went under the water again,” he said. He broke surface two more times, the third time farther out in the whirlpool where the current wasn’t as strong. This allowed him to climb the rock wall where he discovered numerous muskie lures digging into his pants and skin tying his legs together. As he climbed the rock wall, he looked and yelled for his friend, who resurfaced minutes later in calmer waters. “I ran into the water, swam after him with the lures still in my legs, grabbed him, and started swimming back to shore,” he said. Joseph placed his body on the beach and began CPR, but he was unable to save John. A rescue boat came some two hours later and transported them to the marina, where Joseph was interviewed by three police officers. “All I remember is the entire event lasted about 10 minutes, and I know I held my breath at a maximum of three minutes under water,” he recalled. For his actions, Joseph received the Honor Medal with Crossed Palms, the highest award given by the Boy Scouts of America. He received the award in October 2010 at the Badden-Powell World Fellowship Event in Ottawa, the only recipient during Scouting’s centennial year and the 247th recipient since 1938. More recently, his story was featured in a “Scouts in Action” pictorial in the December 2011 issue of Boys’ Life and the “Eagle Scout Profile” in the winter 2011 edition of Eagle Scout Magazine. He also received the Ontario Provincial Police Commissioner’s Citation for Bravery – the highest bravery award an Ontario police officer can receive. As for the tragic event that led to his unsolicited recognition, he said, “I’m mostly beyond it. I will admit that there are days I think about it, but I just try to keep living on and try to keep his (John’s) memory living with me.” The next fall began a new chapter in Joseph’s life as he enrolled in UT Martin as a business major and a member of Coach Bob Beard’s Skyhawk rifle team. So far, he’s adjusted well to college life and NCAA rifle competition. “The college experience was a little bit different than my norm, but I have competed in just as big, if not bigger events. … “ he said. His best collegiate performance to date was at Ole Miss where he placed first for both small bore and air rifle. Plenty of rifle competition and academic work lie ahead for Joseph, but he’s already considering several options after college. “I could take over my parents’ business in the near future, or I might be able to run my own business, or I might do something else completely different. Still have some time to think and make some decisions.” Expect Joseph Barefoot to echo the Boy Scouts motto “Be Prepared,” no matter what life brings his way. Source and photos http://www.utm.edu/facesofutm/facesbio.php?personNum=32&pageNum=1

An 11-year-old Girl Scout was killed when a tree fell in a "freak accident" at an Indiana campground on Monday, officials said. A 10-year-old girl and two women were also injured in the incident. The Perry County Sheriff's Office said it received a call at around 11:30 a.m. local time about a tree that had fallen on several campers and volunteers at Camp Koch, the Girl Scouts of Southwest Indiana's resident camp facility, nestled along the Ohio River near the small city of Cannelton. https://abcnews.go.com/US/fallen-tree-kills-girl-scout-injures-indianas-camp/story?id=63925808

Still, we as Scouters will follow the rules even if others have not. We praise and remember scouts by name in this public forum but not criticize them and certainly not vilify them. Praise in public, criticize in private where criticism is constructive. @John-in-KC @NJCubScouter @MattR @desertrat77

Yet another reminder. Some forum members are negatively criticizing a specific scout by name, who is also a minor , here in public. Scouters don't do that. https://www.scouting.org/health-and-safety/gss/gss01/ There is nothing wrong with wanting to be first ; there can be everything wrong with the means used towards achieving that end. Where were the adults? Do we need to formally review and document adult leader actions at BOR's? RS

"It wasn't adults or sailors who've been on the water for 20 years that handled the situation. It was kids no older than 17 years old, 18 years old who used the training they received in such a program to make sure what could have been an absolute disaster did not turn into an absolute disaster," Marshall said. "We took control of the situation." More details and photos at source https://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/2019/06/19/sea-scouts-save-sailboat-fire-c-d-canal/1497467001/ P.S. Isn't the term "scuttle" incorrectly used in this article?

@TravelerJoe welcome to scouter.com

A sudden thunderstorm hit the Balsam Mountain Campground in the the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. As the pack leaders and parents were getting children to safety, lightning struck two vehicles with four people inside. Those inside the vehicles were uninjured, but two adults who were standing outside the vehicles were knocked to the ground. They were about a foot away from the blast crater, which was about 3-feet deep. The other parents on the camping trip rendered first aid to the victims, got the children into a secure location, and transported the two victims to Haywood Regional Medical Center. One with serious injuries was transferred to Mission Hospital, where he is in stable condition. Both are expected to recover. No scouts were injured. More details at sources: https://www.themountaineer.com/news/two-struck-by-lightning-off-blue-ridge-parkway/article_074ce68e-95bb-11e9-9560-a70be4e72d05.html https://www.cbs17.com/news/north-carolina-news/nc-judge-among-pair-hospitalized-after-lightning-strike-along-blue-ridge-parkway/