Changing lives, impacting communities!
Greetings!

This is a companion communication piece to our website www.HoosierTrailsBSA.org . There are a lot of exciting things happening in Scouting and this resource will help keep you in the loop and prepare you for some awesome Scouting adventures!
Council Gala
The Gala, the Hoosier Trails Council’s annual awards ceremony, will be held at 3:00 pm on Sunday, April 8, 2018, at The Seasons Lodge in Nashville, Indiana.  
Hoosier Trails Council will be hosting our annual Leader Recognition Gala to recognize adult leaders for outstanding service to units and the Council. We will also be congratulating our 2017 Eagle Scouts for their outstanding accomplishments. Please do not miss this opportunity to come celebrate and recognize our fellow leaders for great achievement.

There will also be a special reception hosted by our councils National Eagle Scout Association Chapter and our 1973 Society one hour prior to the Gala in the same building. If you are an Eagle Scout or a member of the 1973 Society, we invite you to come and learn more about the NESA Chapter and all the great things that are happening around the council. NESA Chapter and meet Eagle Scouts from around the council.

The celebration will culminate with the presentation of the 2018 Class of Silver Beaver Award recipients. The Silver Beaver is the highest that a council can bestow upon a volunteer and is presented in recognition of outstanding service to youth. The 2018 Silver Beaver recipients are:
·  Jim Anderson - Bloomington
·  Lloyd DeWar - Bloomington
·  Bob Kessler - Bloomington
·  York Lemley - Columbus
·  Tony Mitchell - Bloomington
 
Pre-Registration is strongly encouraged to ensure that everyone has a meal choice. 

www.HoosierTrailsBSA.org  Gets a Refresh
www.HoosierTrailsBSA.org has also been refreshed, based upon user feedback. New features include:
  • Redesigned Homepage
  • E-news sign up link added to director
  • 17-18 Council Calendar added to director
  • Social media buttons and camp reservation button added to header of every page
  • Site search added to header of every page
  • Expanded video window on homepage
  • Updates on Family Scouting added to homepage
  • 2018 Boy Scout Summer Camp page updated
  • MGI newsletter added to Major Gifts page
  • And More!
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Boy Scout Summer Camp @ MSR
2018 Summer Camp Registration and Merit Badge Sign-ups are now live!
Don't miss out on a summer full of fun and excitement! Longtime Favorites such as Welding, Sailing, Discover Scuba, and COVERT are coming back! We are also reintroducing Photography, Electricity, Moviemaking, Painting, and Rowing Merit Badges to our lineup! Some brand new merit badges we are offering this year include Engineering, Gardening, Animal Science!  The Mountaineer Challenge program will be back for its second year and will be offering Ridge Runner and the new Voyageur challenge, now open all day! We are looking forward to providing your unit and scouts a top-notch program and a week full of memorable experiences!  We can't wait to see you! As always, welcome to camp.   Sites are already filling up, register your troop today.
Wood Badge 2018
In 1911, Baden-Powell took the first steps in training Scouting’s leaders by organizing a series of lectures and activities. Wood Badge provides the opportunity to: Understand Scouting as a family of interrelated, values-based programs providing age-appropriate activities for youth. Recognize contemporary leadership concepts and discover how they are relevant to the Scouting movement and life in general. Apply the skills learned as a member of a successful working team. Renew one’s commitment to Scouting by sharing in an inspirational experience that provides Scouting with revitalized leadership. And, Have FUN!

Many consider Wood Badge to be a peak experience of their Scouting careers. It has served as a source of training and inspiration to thousands.   Download WB18 Flier,Register for the Course
National Youth Leadership Training
NYLT is an exciting, action-packed program designed to provide youth members with leadership skills and experience they can use in their home troops and in other situations demanding leadership of self and others. The NYLT course centers around the concepts of what a leader must BE, what he must KNOW, and what he must DO. The key elements are then taught with a clear focus on HOW TO. The skills come alive during the week as the patrol goes on a Quest for the Meaning of Leadership. Through a wide range of activities, games, and adventures, participants will work and play together as they put into action the best Scouting has to offer. The NYLT staff is comprised of youth who have formerly participated and completed an NYLT course. Also, youth staff participate in up to 5 staff development weekends and are knowledgeable and confident in the content and leadership skills addressed within the course. The youth staff is assisted by trained adult staff members who have attended the NYLT Course Director’s Conference and Council staff.

Who can attend NYLT?  any registered youth in a Boy Scout Troop who is at least 13 years old by July, 2018, a First Class Scout or higher, and recommended by his Scoutmaster may attend the course.  Any registered youth in a Venturing Crew who is at least 13 years old by July, 2018, but not yet 21 years of age, and recommended by his or her Venturing Crew Advisor may also attend the course.