Saturday, October 9 - St. Peter Lutheran Church - Schaumburg, IL

Please click here for the volunteer registration form.

We are in need of lifeguards, medical officers, and other volunteers for Family Camp at Camp Betz! If you have any Scouts in need of service hours, or you would like to help out at all, working with the youth is a great time. Should you have any questions feel free to reach out to the Camp Directors at PTAC.Betz.Familycamp@gmail.com

Now is the time to start preparing for our Race into Scouting Fall Recruitment campaign.

First, we need to address the “Why” behind our recruitment efforts. Once we understand the “Why”, the “How” and “What” are easier to develop. The "Why" is to provide the opportunity for our youth and their families to experience the excitement that Scouting has to offer. These experiences will prepare young people to make ethical and moral choices over their lifetimes by instilling in them the values of the Scout Oath and Law.

There is another set of tools from BSA National that have been designed to help our families and units with recruitment. These tools are BeAScout Pin, Invitation Manager, and Application Manager. These tools are designed so families, who are interested in Scouting, actually recruit us. Please make sure your Unit’s BeAScout Pin information is current. We request that you please address all leads and applications within 48 hours as we will not get the opportunity to make a “second first impression” with those families who are interested in joining Scouting.

In closing, please share your recruitment dates with your District Membership Chair and District Executive so we can help you host a successful event. If you have any questions, please work with your District Membership Chair, District Executive, and your Unit Commissioner or you can contact PTAC.helpdesk@scouting.org.

We need your help! If you've been trained in the past and your training has lapsed, or if you'd like to get trained for the first time, trainings are available! Please fill out this form to let us know if you’d like to get trained.

Our latest COVID Advancement information (dated 5/13/2021) can be found here.

You see the wheelchair/walker/hearing devices/different behaviors and make assumptions. It is human nature. But you need to see past the obvious. You need to see the child/young person behind the disability. Their amazing sense of humor, their ability to remain positive no matter what life throws at them, their desire to just fit in and be one of the crowd, their need to not feel so different. There are so many activities involved with Scouting that can, at first glance, seem very, very difficult for our Scouts with disabilities. But it does not have to be that way. As leaders, involved parents, staff, camp counselors, fellow Scouts, and Scouters, we need to help look for ways things CAN be done. There is usually a way to work around an activity, to think outside the box, look past the ordinary. Then, sit back and enjoy the huge smile and absolute glow you will see watching a Scout with a disability surprise themselves and accomplish a seemingly insurmountable task. We have that ability!!! More than anyone, our Scouts with disabilities need each and every one of us to advocate for their success. We ALL need to be their champions. Will it look different? Possibly. Does that mean it is not worth doing? Absolutely not!

Direct contact leaders must complete Hazardous Weather Training to be considered position trained. This is a very important training and must be taken every two years to stay current, just like Youth Protection Training! Hazardous Weather Training is available around the clock in the BSA Learn Center by logging in to your account on https://my.scouting.org/.

Pathway to Adventure Council is collecting information to better serve our unit, district, and council activities and trainings. If you hold certifications in First Aid/CPR for Professional Rescuer, ServSafe Manager, COPE and Climbing, BSA Shooting sports, or Aquatics, and are willing to lend a hand, please complete this form.

Additionally, we are looking for volunteers who hold a current certification as a ServSafe Instructor, Wilderness First Aid Instructor, and Trainer for First Aid/CPR for Professional Rescuer. Please email Amy.Hutcherson@Scouting.org if you meet these qualifications and are interested in joining the PTAC training team.

A Wood Badge course teaches leadership skills by focusing on five key areas: Living the Values, Growing, Connecting, Guiding, and Empowering. But don't just take our word for it! Check out what Kris Zahrobsky, Council Advancement and Recognition Chair, has to say about Wood Badge!

More information is coming soon. Please contact ptac.popcorn@scouting.org if you have any questions.

In this section of our newsletter, we will hear from our Council President, Marc Passiment.

Today, there are Scouts camping at Camp Napowan, Camp Betz, and Camp Blackhawk, Camp Wolverine, and Camp Reneker at Owasippe Scout Reservation. The staff members and volunteers delivering the program are enthusiastic about creating the best Scouting experience. The campers are excited. They are happy even when it rains. During my visit to Camp Napowan, I met so

On the path of life, a great way to be excited about the destination ahead is to learn from those who have already arrived there. The same goes for the path of an Eagle Scout. Meeting and learning from the Eagle Scouts who have successfully trekked the Eagle Scout Path is what one Berwyn, Illinois community Scout Troop did to motivate and inspire their Scouts to continue in confidence toward the rank of Eagle.

To read more about how Troop 301 completed this activity and what they learned, click here.