IT WON’T SMELL LIKE WOOD SMOKE, BUT IT’S STILL SCOUT CAMP

​Green Mountain Council is excited to join the Cradle of Liberty Council (Philadelphia) for their 2020 Scouts BSA virtual summer camp! While virtual events will never replace what we could have done in a week at Mount Norris, we are enthusiastically endorsing this high-quality experience that includes both virtual and offline camp activities and extensive merit badge offerings.

Virtual Camp @ Resica Falls runs weekly through the first week of August. Registration has to occur two weeks before the session begins, and merit badge class size is limited, so you need to HURRY: last day to register is July 19.

​Access to a week of camp-wide activities, the ability to take up to six merit badges--there are 38 available, many with no prerequisites--and the Camp Welcome Box with patch and program materials, will cost $175. Options include a first-year camper program that balances rank advancement (to first class), merit badges, and the fun of camp.

Register as an individual or as a Troop. For a very nominal fee, there’s even a program of training and camp experiences (and a patch!) for adult leaders.

To register, to view the Camp Guide, and for more details, go to https://resicafalls.org/virtual

The Green Mountain Council, Boy Scouts of America Executive Board is pleased to announce the selection of Mark Saxon as Scout Executive and CEO effective August 1.
 
“We are extremely pleased to welcome Mark to the Green Mountain Council.  He brings energy, experience, and an established track records of success,” said Dan Richardson, the President of the Green Mountain Council.

Mark will succeed Ed McCollin, who is retiring in June following a 42-year career in Scouting – having led the Green Mountain Council since 2010.
 
Mark’s selection follows a nation-wide search which began in March.
 
“My family and I appreciate the opportunity to serve and give leadership to the tremendous volunteers who make Scouting possible for so many Vermont families,” said Mark, who achieved the Eagle Scout rank while growing up in Rhode Island.
 
“Right now, a generation of young people is experiencing its 9/11 moment and looking for a way to respond and support communities working to rebuild from the effects of COVID-19. I believe Scouting’s programs are uniquely suited to help meet this moment and connect girls and boys with a powerful sense of purpose and agency.”
 
Mark began his Scouting career in 2008 as a District Executive at the Old North State Council in Greensboro, North Carolina. He moved on to become a District Director at the Cradle of Liberty Council in Philadelphia, where he has served as the Director of Development since 2015.
 
During his tenure as Director of Development, Mark oversaw many strategic initiatives that led to the council being recognized by the national organization as a leader in fundraising innovation. These initiatives include the expansion of the council’s Development Department to positively impact annual fundraising, major gift cultivation, special events, and donor stewardship efforts, and the implementation of customer relationship management software that transformed the council’s ability to cultivate donors and greatly improved fundraising administrative efficiencies.
 
Throughout his career, Mark has championed diversity at all levels and opportunities for young people living in under-resourced communities to benefit from joining Scouting programs. “I believe Scouting provides a much-needed space for families from all walks of life and backgrounds to come together around the timeless values we hope to instill in our kids,” Mark said.
 
“Social distancing has challenged our volunteers to pioneer innovative ways of continuing our work this spring. I am proud of their efforts and am looking forward to building relationships in the community that can help sustain our mission as we recover from the financial challenges brought on by the pandemic and our prudent but crushing decision to suspend our summer camp season." 
 
While serving in Philadelphia, Mark also gave leadership to the council’s capital campaign and spearheaded the successful effort to secure a $2 million redevelopment grant from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. 
 
Mark received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from the Walter Cronkite School at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona. He and his wife, Bethany, have 2 daughters, Riley and Abigail.
 
Green Mountain Council, Boy Scouts of America delivers programs that have been shown to promote pro-social values, leadership and resilience in youth. Headquartered in Waterbury, the Council serves all 14 counties in the state of Vermont. Annually, nearly 3,000 girls and boys participate in local Scouting programs that are made possible by more than 1,400 trained volunteers. For more information about the Green Mountain Council, please visit www.scoutingvermont.org.

Calvin Coolidge & Ethan Allen District are excited to bring to you another virtual camping weekend!  If you haven't already signed up - please take a moment to register (this will help us make sure you get any information changes hot off the presses!)  There will be flag ceremonies, activities, campfire program and possibility for some impromptu live streams!
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Register for the event here: bit.ly/2YXlEcA
Upload skits for the closing campfire (by 2 PM on Saturday) here: www.dropbox.com/request/hs1NjEr7StwKpvRr9xfD
Join the GMC Virtual Scouting Facebook Group here:  www.facebook.com/groups/gmcvirtualscoutingevents
Read all about the event in our Event Guide!

POW WOW is a Council-wide adult training for everyone interested in Cub Scouting. A Scouting “convention” and learning extravaganza. It’s a time for parents as well as experienced, new, and prospective leaders to learn, share ideas, and see what other packs are doing. Spread the word, get a gang together, and start your fellowship early by carpooling.
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POW WOW is designed to help leaders learn and understand their specific positions in the pack. In addition, it provides resources to improve your unit’s programs by providing a broad range of ideas, as well as address some of the problem areas that arise when working with young Scouts and their parents. ​

This year’s PowWow will not only have classes aimed at the Cub Scouting level but classes as well for the older Scouts BSA leaders as Univ of Scouting did not occur.   
 
This event is also FUN!  Too many times we, as leaders, take Scouting a little too seriously.  While we all know how important it is to deliver the Scouting program to the youth we serve, we as adults, must keep in mind that Scouting is and can be fun for everyone.  The Leader Pow Wow is no different; FUN, FELLOWSHIP and a full day of learning how to instill values in young people through the Scout Oath and Law. 
 
We are planning to have Cub Care for Wolf Scouts up to AOL Scouts.  
Registration Starts 7:30 AM
          Opening Ceremony 8:30 AM
          Closing Ceremony 4:00 PM

Please block the day and join in the festivities!   ​

At the June meeting of the Lodge Executive Committee, a unanimous vote was cast to donate $5000 to the Green Mountain Council Endowment Fund.   These funds will be placed in the endowment fund with the interest earned to help support the overall operations of the Green Mountain Council.  In addition, the Lodge Officers voted to support the summer camp maintenance with their annual gift of $1250 per camp despite the cancellation of the summer programs.

This is a tremendous boost to the endowment fund and a sign of loyalty and support to the Council operations and its properties, stated Scout Executive Ed McCollin.  Based on all the rather grim news we have had in the past 3 months; this vote was fantastic and a big lift to those who will benefit from these gifts.
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McCollin expressed his sincere thanks to Lodge Chief, Nate Quesnel for leading the discussion and for the long-time and positive support given by Lodge Advisor, Marc Poulin.  It says a lot about the Order of the Arrow and its relationship with the Council and camp leadership.”  

​Scouts and Scouters:
 
I wanted to send out a quick note to let you know that the 2021 Jamboree is still on. 
Plans are being made to send a contingent to the Summit in West Virginia next year. 
40 Scouts are registered to date and there is still room for more, many more! 
Our committee has been meeting for the last 8 months, putting together a fantastic trip with some excellent leaders to enable our Scouts to have one of the most memorable trips that will stay with them forever. 
 
The trip includes:
 

• A stay in Washington D.C., with a visit to the Mall
• Hershey Park
• 10 action packed days at the Jamboree
• All travel, food, and lodging
• Each Scout will receive a duffel bag, day pack, 2 baseball caps, rain jacket, neckerchief, cool patches, and more. 

 
This will be an event Scouts will never forget.
.
 
Here is a link to the GMC flyer: https://www.scoutingvermont.org/uploads/4/7/2/2/47226097/2021_jamboree_brochure.pdf
 
It includes how to sign up and a payment schedule. 
 
Please spread the word. This will be a trip of a lifetime.
 
Feel free to send me any questions about the Jamboree.
 
 
Thanks,
Russ Baker  rusbaker@gmavt.net
 
2021 GMC Jamboree Committee Chair

The Green Mountain Council Scout Shop will not be open the first Saturday of the month in July and August. The store schedule is
 
Monday to Thursday – 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
 
Closed Saturday and Sunday.
 
To place an order, you may call (802-244-5189), fax (802-244-5259), or email laurie.sneed@scouting.org.

On Thursday, May 14, at the Council Annual Business meeting, Dan Richardson was unanimously approved to become the new President of the Green Mountain Council.

Dan has been a board member for four years and most recently served as the Executive Vice President. He is an Eagle Scout with three palms, a 5th-year pipestone recipient, an attendee of the 1989 National Jamboree, and Brotherhood member of Sipp-O lodge in the Buckeye Council based out of Canton, Ohio.  He most recently served as a Den leader for Pack 777 in Montpelier.  Dan and his wife, Britt, have two children who have both been part of scouting, including as a founding member of the female Troop 1709.
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In his professional life, Dan is a partner in the firm of Tarrant, Gillies, Richardson & Shems, LLP, located in Montpelier, Vermont.  Dan’s practice focuses on civil litigation, municipal law, utilities, administrative hearings, mediation, and appeals.  Dan currently serves as a small claims court judge and special master with the Washington County Superior Court.  Dan is a member of the Montpelier City Council and former chair of the City of Montpelier Development Review Board.  Dan is also an adjunct professor at Vermont Law School where he taught municipal law until 2019.  He is a member of the Access to Justice Coalition and a Past-President of the Vermont Bar Foundation, which oversees charitable giving within the legal community.  He is also a Past-President of the Vermont Bar Association.  Dan graduated magna cum laude from Vermont Law School where he was the Editor-in-Chief of the Vermont Law Review.  He graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Ohio Wesleyan University.  Dan is also the Founder and former Editor of the SCOV Law Blog, a nationally recognized legal blog, which summarizes and discusses Vermont Supreme Court decisions. 

As many you may now have heard, I will be retiring from the Boy Scouts of America after a wonderful journey lasting 42 years!  My last day with the Green Mountain Council is June 30, 2020. 
 
I want to thank every parent, leader and Scout who has made a difference in my life and the lives of the those they have touched through this wonderful movement. Scouting changed my life and I know it has done the same for thousands of others during my time in the profession. 
 
In my initial interview for a job as a District Executive, I was told that if I looked as this work as a job, I would undoubtedly fail, but if I determined it was a calling by a higher power, I would succeed.  At 21, broke and fresh out of college, those words didn’t mean much to me at the time. However, as my career continued, I realized how very true that statement was.  A professional in the Boy Scouts of America became my calling and who I had become.  I was never bored and had opportunities that I would have never had in any other profession. I have met so many wonderful people from around the country with the common denominator of living by the Scout Oath and Law.  I will truly miss that part of my career.
 
 Lainnie and I will still be around dividing our time between Vermont and Florida as we continue to work on beginning a new chapter in our lives together.   We look forward to spending time with our children and grandchildren, hiking, biking and enjoying life with a new twist.
 
Now it is time to pass the torch to the next generation of leadership who I am confident will carry it to a bigger and better future for the Green Mountain Council and for each of you who have put so much time and energy into developing young people into responsible and caring adults.  A special note of thanks and gratification to the loyal, dedicated and hardworking office staff who were with me throughout my time with Green Mountain Council.   
 
Thank you again for helping make my journey a great one!  I hope to see you one day “on the trail”.
 
Sincerely
 
Ed McCollin
Scout Executive
Green Mountain Council
2010-2020.

BSA membership fees to increase starting August 1st.
 
Click here for more in formation that includes a Q and A for parents and leaders.