The Mighty Chief

The book was a lot better than the movie.

Sorry about that...

If anyone's interested in "reliving" the NOAC shows should visit www.oashows.com.

OHH I CAN'T WAIT FOR NOAC TOMORROW!!

I dont really agree with where he stands (I'm not a big fan of the republicans), but he indeed does get my vote based on the fact that he has proven himself to be a true eagle, volunteering often and demonstrating great leadership in his community and nation.

I'm not too sure about the other regions; however, the Northeast Region of the Order of the Arrow recently published a "Where to go camping" booklet. That's been quite useful in deciding what each camp in the region has to offer: facilities, acreage, lake(s)/swimming, etc.

"Inexperience is what makes a younger man do what an older man says is impossible." --Herbert B. Prochnow "You miss 100% of the shots you never take." --Wayne Gretzky

Land of Bananas, Home of the beaver, Where Jim the Moose Tells all his jokes- HAHAHAHA! Blue skies, and sandy shores: I WILL RETURN ONCE MORE To Sandy Beach, Beach, Beach, Beach, Sandy Beach, Beach, Beach, Beach. --That's the "Anthem" of Camp Sandy Beach of Yawgoog Scout Reservation (Narragansett Council)... Yawgoog also has an Alumni Society for those "veteran" campers who come back each year, for many years to come.

The way I see it, a camp is only as good as its staff who run the program. All camps have their own unique aspects and charm, so it would be nearly impossible to rank one above another without applying one's own personal experience at that camp. Personally, I think that the council's Order of the Arrow lodge's involvment in maintaining the camp makes a tremendous impact on enhancing the "charm" of the camp. I recently attended summer camp at a camp whose yearly "endowment" (from the council I suppose) was about 16 million dollars, and individual troops "adopted" campsites to maintain them. Though the facilities and area of the camp were quite impressive, I can say that the best camp I've been to is one that doesn't have much of a yearly endowment and its campsites and facilities are maintained mostly by the OA lodge. That's just my opinion though... Disregarding what I just said and just taking into considering the camp facilities and the program run, I would say that the best camp I've been to would be Yawgoog Scout Reservation in Rhode Island.

Wow. Indeed it was a special court of honor. Inspiring stories like these should be better publicized...

If a scout had lost his portion to a blue card for an eagle-required merit badge of which the troop had recorded his completing that badge, would it be much of a problem for the scout to earn the rank of eagle later on down the road?

What really "charged my batteries" today was reading all these posts--and being able to relate to all of them. The kind of brotherhood that scouts develop over years by sharing many good and bad experiences through outdoor experiences really says a lot about this organization. I've been in scouting for a long time, and I can say that I'm still very good friends with some of my fellow scouts, and we enjoy recalling past scouting experiences. They were, and still are, my brothers. Still, there just isn't enough I can possibly say about my appreciation of the brotherhood achieved through scouting. What charges my batteries on every camping trip I attend with my troop is seeing the boys working together cheerfully to get the job done. So what charges my batteries? When scouts manage to sit around an unlit fire and share the same warmth and cheerfulness as they would with a fire lit. When scouts help other scouts--set up a tent, build a fire, complete a merit badge--without being asked. When younger scouts who have never camped in a rural area away from "civilization" look up at the stars and say "WOW". When I take part in an Ordeal weekend, and watch the ceremonies. These--and many, many other personal experiences--are what charge my batteries.

My condolences and deepest sympathy go out to the family and friends of all the scouts who have died untimely deaths. Apropos, there is a ceremony for lost arrowmen (members of the Order of the Arrow) called the "broken arrow ceremony." I strongly suggest anyone who has lost a fellow arrowman to read this ceremony. Go to www.scoutresources.org to view the ceremony. Once again, my deepest sympathy goes out to all who have experienced such a loss.

Reverence simply means a respect for other religions and beliefs. A scout shouldn't in any way disrespect anyone because of their religious convictions. Therefore, scouting should be open to people of all religions. As for one's duty to God and country, this phrase is one of which has been around for a long time, and with the coming of agnostic and atheist and deist religions of our time, this may raise some controversy. The way I see it is that as long as one follows a set of ideals and beliefs similar to that of the scouting movement, and doing so RESPECTS other religions, he/she should be considered a scout. Duty to God should be interpreted loosely to fit all people's beliefs, so long as they are not sadistic or hateful in any way.

Let us keep that in mind when expressing our thoughts and opinions on this site, notably that a scout is helpful, friendly, courteous, and kind.