With the beginning of a new Calendar year, we started out strong as a Troop. We have new leaders that are taking roles for the coming 6-12 months. We had 14 Scouts and leaders attend Snow Base and we have 15 new Scouts cross-over from Cub Scouts to Troop 283. As I have been able to travel, stay and discuss with each of them, I have had time to dive into the ‘why do you participate in Scouts? I am often struck by the different why’s I get, some are common, some are unique. What’s similar across them all is the focus and attention each Scout gives to these answers. They know why they participate, they know what they like. They also like discussing these ideas with their adult leaders. It is a great opportunity for each to share a little about themselves, and I encourage each adult to stalk to their Scout about it this month. Then we can collectively take this information as a Troop, add to what is working well and work on where we have improvement suggestions.

As we look ahead to February, we’ll have an opportunity to keep developing our winter fun skills – both having fun and doing service. The annual Ft. Snelling National Cemetery Clean-up depends every year on the Scouts to go from Christmas green to winter white. Every year, for 4 hours, nearly 500 volunteers descend on the Cemetery to pick-up, gather & dispose of the Holiday Decorations. It is amazing to see the Cemetery transform, and all because we show up and help. We also will have the opportunity to ‘be on display’ at our places of worship’ – assisting each of our faith beliefs in holding services and ‘doing our duty to God.’

So, my Scoutmaster challenge to each of you: where will you grow in your faith, how will you serve our Country? Scouting and the USA is strong because each person within it does his part to make it better. How will you add to that legacy this month?

Yours in Scouting,

SM Smith
c 612.281.7501

 

​September started up just as August ended - full of Scouting. We started out the month by hosting the annual James J Hill Coaster Cart derby, running a 'Find out about Scouting' booth with floating archery targets and Marching in the Parade - all in 1 weekend! Then it was off to Wayzata beach for our next 2 Troop meetings - Stand Up Paddle boarding (SUP) & Canoe races. In-between our 2 meetings, we camped out between the storms and had a great canoeing and exploration weekend at Camp Sacajawea. The next weekend found us helping out the American Legion dispose of flags that were worn beyond repair. Then we started our annual fund raisers of selling popcorn and wreaths closing with a our monthly Troop Leader Meeting (TLM) where we worked on our leadership roles and planned out our October Troop meetings and events.
 
Feeling tired yet? Well, if so, I hope you take this weekend to rest and reflect because our year is truly just getting underway. I was asked this month why do we do so much? Partly we do Scouting a lot because the Scouts want to get out and have fun. Partly we do Scouting a lot because getting out and doing is what boys need and want to do. But I think mostly we get out and do Scouting a lot because we are asked and called to do so.
 
Take for example part of our Mission in the Boy Scouts - to teach and embody citizenship. I,for one, had never been part of an official flag disposal ceremony - how sad given I've been a US Citizen for over 44 years and son of a retired Army Officer (as well as an Eagle Scout.) Take leadership - how many of our Scouts at school or in sports get to plan, set-up and run a 2-night program for over 40 peers? So, why would we not get out and do more Scouting? Take self-development - where else can a boy go to plan, execute and reflect on a project where he led 10+ peers in community service?
 
If a person is not growing in some way, likely he is shrinking. So too does it go with Scouting. What are you doing to hone your Scout skills? How are you becoming a better leader? Who are you bringing into our Scouting family? Let's see how we can all grow in October to continue to do a lot of Scouting. Although the weather and trees tell us fall is here, Scouting continues to Spring forth with new growth and opportunity at every corner
 
I look forward to seeing each of you at a our Troop meeting, our Roundtable, our camp-out and our University of Scouting!
 
Yours in Scouting,
Scoutmaster Smith

​I know historically, August is a ‘slow Scouting’ month each year. This year though, I found it extremely Scout-full. My 3 highlights were: 1. Going to Many Point Week 2 in Quetico-camp-site, 2. Meeting with our perspective/nearly-Eagle Scouts and 3. Visiting Baden-Powell’s statue in London, England.
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First, earlier this month, I got to see 15 Scouts using the Patrol Method set-up camp, cook, operate, clean & put away camp on their own. Sure, it was not all smooth and silky sailing, but the growth that I saw in each Patrol and individually in each Scout was tremendous. We also ate well, came home a ‘Super Troop’ and moved the bar significantly for advancement for each Scout. I hope the parents of each Scout also saw this when their Scout returned from camp. I am hoping even more that next year we have double this number joining and growing with us.

Second, when I wasn’t at camp, I was busy following up with several of our Scouts working on finishing their Eagle rank. Some have years of Scouting ahead of them, others just days before they turn 18. One common thread with each of them is their desire to give back to the Scouting program. I know we often think of the Eagle Rank as the pinnacle, but what every Eagle Scout undertakes upon receiving his Eagle is the Eagle Oath to give back and help others along their similar journey. I would expect this to be the beginning of our seeing more visible Eagles continuing their leadership development while they are free to focus their energies on areas of specific interest and concern.

Third, take a look at the picture. What do you see? Yes, that’s right, it’s yours truly and a double size statue of Scouting’s Founder, Lord Robert Baden-Powell. I got the chance when I was in England last week to stop by and visit this place. To me, what I took away, is that not only is Scouting bigger than anything I will ever be, but through Scouting I have the opportunity to continue to grow and experience Baden-Powell’s vision. For he saw many years ago the need for society to have a place where boys could have fun growing under the watchful eye of trained leaders. And since I alone cannot reach the top of this vision, I am looking to others to help me reach there together. Sometimes it will be Scouts, sometimes other leaders and sometimes parents. By growing and reaching together, I believe we can approach where Baden-Powell pointed out to us so many years ago.

So, come join me this fall as we kick-off our 2017-18 Scouting year on the best year of adventure and leadership development!
Yours in Scouting,
Mr. Smith
 

​This past weekend, we here in the US celebrated Memorial Day where we honor those who have served our country. As is becoming  our Troop 283 tradition, we helped the American Legion Post 118 in Wayzata decorate the graves in nearby Summit Park Cemetery with a flag celebrating each veteran. We almost missed it this year because, as it turns out, the gentleman who has organized it for years passed away. That first made me sad, but then I remembered why we do this service project to begin with. It is because he asked us in 2015, our Troop's 100th Anniversary, if we could lend our 'youth' to assist the 'seniors' in this important recognition. 

Why do I mention this part of the story instead of commenting and thanking our 10 Scouts and 4 leaders that came to help with the 98 graves we marked? Because it is not so much the work we did, the new friendships we made, or the fun we had, rather it is the legacy that this veteran did for those that came before him. In his case, he made sure that the veterans in this cemetery are not forgotten. And now we honor him because we are following through on his wishes to honor Wayzata's veterans.


The reason I chose to write about legacies is that we are on the cusp of recognizing our Senior Class of Troop 283. We have many Eagles again this year, and I am grateful for each of these Scouts. I have watched them grow and mature into the young men of our Troop that led many of our current Scouts in rank advancement, skill lessons and adventure trips they'll talk about for years to come. Each of these Eagles has also left his mark on our community through a service project - from gardens alive with pollinators to new canoe racks for our local park district, each of these projects is leaving a legacy around us even as they leave and head off to college, technical schools, the military and jobs.


So, as we enter into our summer months of no homework and new adventures of a lifetime, I want us all to think about: what is our legacy as Scouts? What is our Troop legacy? How will others remember you? How will they know you were here? What mark will you leave behind? What is and will be your legacy as a Scout?


Yours in Scouting,

Mr. Smith

​Happy March and early Spring!
 
With the warming temperatures and lack of snow, it’s hard to imagine that we are still 3 weeks away from the official start of spring. It definitely made our February trip to Giant’s Ridge a lot slushier, and we took advantage by having a tailgate cook-out on Sunday to close out our time there!
 
This past Monday at the Troop Leader Meeting, we demonstrated, discussed and learned about the first point of the Scout Law, A Scout is Trustworthy, and how that enables and forms the foundation of Leadership Development. One of the key areas of being a Boy Scout and advancing in rank is assuming larger and more complex leadership roles. As a Scout grows, he also learns that he himself cannot do all of his role perfectly out of the gate. This is where trust and leadership meet.
 
Scouts learn and grow together as a Patrol and as a Troop. Through this growth, they learn about each other and how they individually can work together with others. Then when a Scout becomes a leader, he leverages these relationships to lead his fellow Scouts. The Scouts then follow their leader because he was elected by them, his peer group. The key to making this all work in the end though is through the trust they put in each other. Sure, each Scout has innate leadership skills and abilities, but only by listening, compromising and trusting each other can a leader truly lead.  We demonstrated this by creating group human chairs that only allowed the whole group to sit together or fail together – enabled solely through trusting and following each other into a sitting position.
 
So, I challenge each Scout this month, what are you doing to grow your trust in others and how are you helping your fellow Scouts become more trust-worthy of you?
 
Yours in Scouting,
SM Smith