Registration now open for our fall events 

 

 

Merit Badge Counselor Training, October 5, LDS Church, 6:30 p.m. (before roundtable)

 

October 21, LDS Church, San Rafael

 

Basic Adult Leader Outdoor Orientaiton (BALOO) 9:00 AM - 12:30 PM

Cubmaster and Asst. Cubmaster Position-Specific Training 1:30 PM - 4:30 PM

Scoutmaster and Asst. Scoutmaster Position-Specific Training 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM

 

October 28 - October 29, Camp Tamarancho

Introduction to Outdoor Leader Skills, Saturday, 9:00 AM - Sunday, 2:00 PM

 

Don't forget the online adult and youth supplemental training courses which can be accessed at http://my.scouting.org.

Click here to email the training chair if you have questions about training. 

We had an awesome, beautiful, and successful work weekend at Camp Marin Sierra this past Labor Day weekend. Many tasks were completed to get the camp ready for the winter season. It was really, really hot, but these people had infectious, enthusiastic, willing spirits, and they got the job done!

Thanks goes out to:

Logan Blue, Nevada City Tucker Bowers, Oakland Grant Colby, Oakland Dillon Cole, Roseville Alex Lerch, Grass Valley Anthony Lerch, Grass Valley Cait McGinnis, Grass Valley Joey Rempe, Novato

Bill Seifert, Reno Bradley Seifert, Reno Chris Seifert Reno Walter Trygstad, Davis Grace Van Winkle, Grass Valley Troop 1776 (7 people), San Ramon Chris Wells, Oregon House Dillon Wolfe, Reno

Packs, Troops, and Crews:
Let's Add Members

 

Every year, all BSA units (packs, troops, crews, and posts) are required to renew their membership and renew their relationship with their chartering organization. This process is called rechartering. It can be an involved process, but we hope to make it as simple as possible for you.

Before roundtable on Thursday, October 5, at 6:45 p.m., there will be an orientation about this process. This will be at the location of our regular roundtable (LDS Church, 220 N. San Pedro Road, San Rafael), and it will be done in time for the regular roundtable meetings.

 

There are some changes to the process, so you should have a representative there to stay informed.

Every pack, troop, and crew should have a representative at this meeting. We cannot stress this enough. Without exception, every year we have people that do not attend, and they get totally lost in the process. Please, please, please find someone to attend. Much remains the same; some things have changed.

At this meeting, you will receive:

You will also be able to ask questions and learn about some of the common mistakes and pitfalls in the process.

Email with any questions.

 

Come have fun at Camp Tamarancho on Saturday, October 28. The council Shooting Sports Committee will conduct the Fifth Annual Cub Scout Halloween and Turkey Shoot. Archery and BB guns will be the activities of the day. Cub Scouts (Tiger through Webelos) are encouraged to wear fun Halloween costumes.

 

Don't worry; no turkeys will be harmed at this event!

 

The fun starts at 10:00 a.m. with 30 minute sessions every 40 minutes (allowing 10 minutes of travel time between sessions) until 2:50 pm. We can accommodate 8 Cubs per rotation on each range. Space is limited, so do sign up early. Cubs should arrive at the BB Gun range 15 minutes before their scheduled session for a mandatory safety briefing. (If they miss it, they will not be allowed to shoot.) Also, allow ample time to drive up the "hill." There will be traffic coming and going. If your Cub Scout is late for his scheduled time he may miss the action.

 

Cost per participant is $10.00, which covers 1 session of archery and 1 session of BB's shooting.

 

Register soon because it will fill up quickly!

 

Online sign-ups and scheduling ONLY on the council web site (click this link) starting September 10. Sign-up deadline: October 24. Release forms must be filled out and signed by at least one custodial parent/guardian in order to participate. Forms are available on the council web site. NO WALK-INS WILL BE ALLOWED.

 

Tigers must have an adult partner with them. No one can wear face masks, jewelry, or loose clothing while shooting. Everyone must wear closed-toed shoes in camp. No dogs allowed in camp (unless a service animal).

 

For more information or with questions, email Steve Dutra.

Scouts had a great time this summer racing their pinewood derby cars at the Marin County Fair. The top racers from many packs participated.

Race results are posted here.

A huge thank you goes out to those who sacrificed their time to ensure the Cub Scouts were able to have this race, led and organized by Brian Frack of Pack 28:

• Weigh-Ins: Nick Goffeney, Jerome Kim, Sam Frack (who just bridged to Troop 76)
   
• Race Day: Jarrod Note, Ted Katsouras, Sam Frack, and Sara Frack

Thank you so much!!!  

 

The mission of the Boy Scouts of America is to prepare young people to make ethical and moral choices over their lifetimes by instilling in them the values of the Scout Oath and Scout Law.

 

To do this - while delivering the nation's foremost youth development program - the BSA must remain vigilant in controlling costs. Although we have been successful in reducing our expenditures in many areas, it has become necessary to evaluate our annual membership fees.

 

Based on feedback from both volunteers and employees, the BSA membership fee will increase to $33 for all registered youth and adult leaders, effective December 1, 2017.

 

Membership fees support the services that are necessary to provide Scouting to youth from Kindergarten to 21 years of age. From education to high-adventure experiences you can't get anyplace else, the BSA provides unique growth opportunities at a great value.

 

Services include primary liability coverage for all volunteer leaders and chartered organizations, ongoing advances in technology, fundraising support, new program development and membership recruiting strategies, and support materials. In 2016 alone, the BSA served 2.3 million youth members through approximately 270 local councils across the United States and its territories.

 

With the help of all of our volunteers and Scouting parents, we will continue accomplishing incredible things for young people and the communities we serve.

1. Make sure the Unit dropdown box displays your unit.
2. Change Unit Pin Mode from council to unit
3. Change Unit Pin Status to active
4. Set you Apply Status to active
5. Enter your web address (if known) in the Unit Web Site box.
6. Add primary contacts.
7. Check unit meeting address for accuracy (defaults to charter org address)
8. Add addition information/logos and so on as desired.
9. Select the fields to display on the pin
10. Save all changes

 

In the Spring of 2017, we launched the Open Door Membership Campaign to grow Scouting membership in the Marin Council to over 2,000 young people over the next two years.

 

The Open Door campaign is designed make Scouting more visible in our communities, to let families know about Scouting in their neighborhoods, and invite them to join. We hope that every unit has an Open Door.

 

Having an "Open Door" comprises a few key elements. It means that your unit has a Community Presence (marching in parades, attending public functions in uniforms), has a Social Media Presence (a public Facebook or Instragram page, parents and families routinely posting about Scouting on their own feeds), and is visible in Serving the Community (school and community service projects). It also means that families can easily find a local Scouting unit online, so we ask you to take full advantage of BSA's BeAScout.org portal which also allows online registration. And lastly, having an Open Door means that your unit literally opens its doors through consistent recruiting activities held at different points in the year (back-to-school nights, camping displays at the neighborhood park, invitations to unit events for non-members).

 

The Open Door campaign runs in two cycles each year, resetting on July 1 and Jan. 1; steps need to be taken each six months for your unit's Door to be considered open.

 

We would like to congratulate the following units whose Doors were open (2/3's open or fully open) between January 1st and June 30th of this year:

We'd also like to congratulate those units that achieved membership growth compared to 6/30 of 2016:

We are also pleased with the strong start to the fall with the following units already reporting progress:

And the following units already confirming that they have an Open Door for new members:

• Packs 27, 33, 34, 48, & 186
• Crew 333

Every young person deserves the opportunity to join Scouting, but they will only join if we open our doors to new families. To find out more about the Open Door campaign, click here (2017 membership plan). For ideas about social media presence, click here (social media flyer).

 

To update your unit Open Door status for the period of 7/1/17 through 12/31/17, click this link. The survey can be updated multiple times through the period as you make progress and make Scouting available throughout Marin.

Several packs and troops in Novato showed their community presence in the Fourth of July parade.

November is the time for giving thanks. It is also the time of year to give to those in need. It's amazing how many families and people are food challenged in Marin-more than you think. The BSA national service project of Scouting for Food benefits millions of people every year.

This year, the Bay Area councils will do this service project on the first and second weekends of November--11/4 and 11/11. The weekend of 11/4 is when we distribute the door hangers; Saturday, 11/11 is when we pick up the food and bring it to the Food Bank. This year again, the need is great--perhaps greater than ever.

Since 1988, the Marin Council has gathered well over a million pounds of food for the Marin Food Bank. Last year alone, we contributed over 27,000 lbs of food when all the totals were in, during one of the rainiest days of winter! What an awesome way to teach our families how to give and to serve their community. It is a very tangible way to see giving in action and leaves everyone feeling like they have contributed significantly.

Since November 4 is immediately following the November roundtable (Nov. 2), we probably will not be able to do the orientation then to hand out the door hangers. It's just too close to the event. We will give further details in the October Dispatch on how we will handle details. We probably will have units pick up their door hangers and instructions at the council office during October.

 

Email Tim with any questions.

 

Don't miss your opportunity for one of the greatest adventures you can have: working at camp. Fall is a great time to apply. Interviewing begins after the first of the year.

 

Marin Sierra

Applications are already flowing in! We are seeking over-21 people to staff waterfront, COPE, climbing, shotgun, rifle, kitchen, and other areas. Over-18s can work as area directors or assistants in shotgun, rifle, COPE, climbing, and kitchen. Over 16s can be lifeguards. 15-year-olds can work all summer and be paid. Counselors-in-training are 14 years old and work for 2 weeks. There is something for everyone!

 

Tamarancho

For Cub Scout day camp at Tamarancho, we are seeking the same age groups for a myriad of positions as well.

Applications for Boy Scout resident camp can be downloaded by clicking this link. Cub Scout day camp applications can be found at this link. Also you can email Nancy Rozell about Cub Scout camp or Tim Wells about Boy Scout camp.

 

 

Welcome to another year of learning, fun and excitement for your Scouts! We appreciate your time and devotion to helping youth in Marin.

 

To help facilitate Scout activities for your unit, Marin Council is going to focus its efforts on four key best practice areas in the 2017-18 Scout year:

 

1) Rechartering. Online rechartering (see article above) will be available for your unit on October 1. There will be a complete orientation to the process before the October roundtable on October 5 at 6:45. Make sure someone is there to keep you informed of new updates and changes. If you have any additional questions, please feel free to contact Marin Council or your commissioner.

 

2) Simplified Service Hours Reporting. An online recording system has been problematic to record hours and difficult for council to assist units (passwords, etc). We are going to go "old school" and simply ask that you complete a form (which we will provide) and email/send to Tim Wells or Nancy Rozell.

 

3) Journey to Excellence (JTE). JTE is a measurement of your health as a unit to show you where you are being successful and where you can improve. Your unit commissioner can provide to you the most recent JTE form and can discuss your unit goals for 2018. While traditionally this was done around the end of the year, we welcome beginning these discussions at any time, beginning at roundtable.

 

4) Training. Key to any successful program are the trained leaders. Marin has made great strides last year to ensure all leaders understand how to work with youth with Youth Protection Training. Did you know that BSA has resources to help leaders with their specific function? Did you know it is required? Online reporting can now give you a detailed list of the training by leader to share with your unit at My.Scouting.org.

 

Special note: there is a great deal of training available, and it is easy to get a little overwhelmed by all of the options. In light of this, click here to view a simple roadmap of what training is needed by position for your reference.

 

If you do not know who your commissioner is, please email our council commissioner Chris Cardinal, and he will make sure you have that contact information.

The Marin Council is striving for an even more successful Scouting year. If you have any suggestions or would like to help out with any of these key areas, please speak with your commissioner, Nancy Rozell, or Tim Wells.

 

Don't forget to fill out the Unit Money-Earning Application for your fundraisers. It can be found on the council web site here. This form is required for any fundraiser not sponsored by the council. It helps us answer questions when people call and allows us to point them your way when they want to make a purchase! No need to fill one out for popcorn since that is a council-wide fundraiser.

 

Contact our office with any questions.

Search and Rescue Exploring

Explorer Post 74 wrapped up their 28th annual Marin Search and Rescue intensive summer camp training. This year due to the uncertainty of the Detwiler Fire, they made a last minute venue change from Yosemite to Marin Sierra. Things turned out great with lots of technical terrain that was new to them at Donner Pass. They invited an 11-year-old whom they rescued last winter when she fell 10 feet through the snow into a creek by Castle Peak. She trained with them all week and completed her first rappel.

 

The Explorers completed several challenging steep-angle evolutions along with an extended rescue scenario. They also covered a number of other core SAR skills. With well over 2500 hours of training logged, they are well prepared when the phones goes off for the next SAR mission!

 

If you or anyone you know (adults or youth) are interested in learning more about this Explorer Post, please contact Nancy Rozell

Our extended fall hours will be beginning on September 14 and will run through October 28:

• Monday, Wednesday, Friday--10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
• Tuesday and Thursday--10:00 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
• Saturday--10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

 

The Marin Council office and store will be closed on the following dates:

 

Monday, October 9

Friday, November 10

Thursday and Friday, November 23-24