Baltimore Area Council

Serving West Baltimore County
District Executive: Kathy Herche
District Chairman: Brian Macari  •  District Commissioner: Paul Kraus

701 Wyman Park Drive, Baltimore, MD 21211


Welcome to the Arrowhead District web page!

We hope you enjoy your visit. If you're looking to join the Boy Scouts of America, please take a look at the Contacts page to get in touch with the right people. Our District Executive, Kathy Herche, would be happy to assist you in this regard.

Arrowheadsup

Don’t be the last one to find out! All Scouters should be receiving ArrowHeadsUp emails. These emails are used for reminders about upcoming events, deadlines, schedule changes, and weather-related info for district and council events. To subscribe to the Arrowhead District mailing list, Arrowheadsup, please send an email to listmanager@BACScouters.org, in the first line of the email type "subscribe arrowheadsup" and hit send. Thank you.

Calendar

July 2008

28 Popcorn Seminar

October 2008

25 Merit Badge Madness

November 2008

1 Baltimore Area Council Cub Scout Pow Wow 2008

April 2009

24-26 Arrowhead District Camporee/Weboree (Stake your claim now!)

From The District Executive

Volunteers and Background Checks - An Update
As dedicated BSA volunteers, you understand the importance of keeping our youth safe in the Scouting program. To ensure Youth Protection, our organization has conducted criminal background checks on all new volunteers since April 2003. Because some volunteers have been continually registered in the program before April 2003, some have not had a criminal background check. In the next few months, we will be communicating with those volunteers on this issue. Click here for a flyer (PDF format, Size - 483KB).


Centennial Recruiter Patch
The Boy Scout Division has produced a new recruiter patch incentive to support the emphasis of boy-to-boy recruiting in Boy Scouting. Boy Scouts who recruit another Boy Scout into their troop this fall are eligible to receive the patch. Click here for a flyer (PDF format, Size - 320KB).

Baltimore County Public Schools Office of Professional Development Resource Centers
Click here for a flyer with additional details (PDF format, Size - 111KB) or  Click here to go to their site
The Resource Centers for Families and Schools are committed to supporting student achievement in our homes, schools, and communities. The five Resource Centers are part of the Baltimore County Public Schools Parent Support Services Program. Centers provide: instructional resources and services for students, families, educators, and community members.
 

Available Equipment, Supplies and Materials

Visitors to the centers will have access to a variety of equipment, supplies, and materials to produce educational items with the support of experienced staff members. Consumable materials are charged at replacement cost. The following is a list of equipment and materials available at the centers.

  • 25” Laminator

  • Copier

  • Letter and Shape Cutters

  • Computer

  • Poster Maker

  • Button Maker

  • Clip Art Books

  • Resource Books

District Chairman's Corner

What does society think about Eagle Scouts?: A Discussion on why we follow a program.

Eagle Scouts are placed on a pedestal by society. Is this because they have a patch? Obviously not.

Eagle Scouts receive preferred status “points” from Colleges, Employers, The Military and many other organizations.

My Troop has an Eagle Scout who applied to various colleges after making Eagle. One of these was Virginia Tech, a school he very much wished to attend. His grades were decent, but not stellar, and he got accepted at all the other schools he applied to, except VT. He was saddened but accepted the invitation of another school. About a month later he received a letter in the mail from Virginia Tech. In it the school apologized for an oversight they had made during the evaluation process. It seems they overlooked on critical, acceptance-point giving, piece of information on that application. What do you suppose that might have been? Well, if you guessed it was his status as an Eagle Scout, you were right. This fact was enough to put him over the top. The school offered him a spot and he attends it to this day!

Over the past 100 years or so, society has found that there is a verifiable probability that an Eagle Scout will outperform others from similar societal backgrounds.

The areas of higher expectancy include, but are not limited to:

  • Greater Character

  • Goal oriented-they are achievers – finishing what they start.

  • They know how a team works-better understanding of and working ability relating to group dynamics.

  • They know how to lead others and care for them.

Can a camping or “outdoor” club inculcate these attributes in young men? Maybe, but probably not. There must be character development and leadership training, as well as opportunities for practice, and these things are difficult to just ‘slip in’ in a casual setting. These are difficult to achieve in a sport, as the over-riding goal is to learn athletic skill and to win. I am sure coaches everywhere hope to impart these things, but they have no tool kit with which to work. Success will be catchers-catch-can.

The Boy Scouts of America has a tried and true formula, a set of operating methodologies that have been proven to work. You could call this a “Time Honored System”. This is so, or society (who is pretty smart at recognizing and reacting to truths or falsehoods, especially over time) would eschew Eagle Scouts rather than embracing them.

THIS IS PROOF POSITIVE WHY WE SHOULD STICK TO THE PROGRAM!!!

Adults in the Boy Scouts of America can spend a lot of time thinking they know a better way, because “it is easier”, or “it makes sense for my unit”, or “you can’t expect one or two boys to function as a patrol on a campout!?”. Don’t fall prey to these types of arguments. They are born of insecurity, adult’s insecurity! The boy’s will be just fine, working along developing character and all the other good things our wonderful program inculcates into them.

From the Area Scouter:

Roundtable

Do you love Scouting? Have you seen it work in the boy’s lives? Want some fresh ideas to take back to your unit? Would you like to compare notes on unit operations, etc.? Have we got the place for you!! Join the rest of your District for Round Table! Be the catalyst for the next really interesting discussion! Our Round Table Chairman, Don Martin, has an action packed agenda just for you! Don’t miss out! Don’t let your boys miss out! See you there at 7:30 pm, the second Monday of every month at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, 7902 Liberty Road, Randallstown. Be There!

Registration

Please submit adult and youth applications immediately. Youth applications need to be signed by the unit leader and a parent. Adult applications must be submitted for transfers and changes of position. They need to be signed by the COR and the committee chair. Registrations may be mailed to the service center with payment, or payment may be deducted from your unit account. For information on how to set up a unit account, please call the Help Desk at 443-573-2525.

Membership Reminders

Race to the Spring Cup - Give every boy a chance! Spring is a great time to recruit new Cub Scouts and get them involved right away in your summertime pack program. Registration for all boys entering first grade in the fall may be submitted on June 1st. New youth are eligible for Twilight Camp, resident camping at Camp Oest, the Bobcat award, the Summertime Pack Award, and the new Super Cub patch. Webelos to Scout Advancement - Keep boys in Scouting! Please submit all paperwork for Webelos scouts bridging to your Troop. Summer camp is essential to keeping these boys in Scouting! If summer schedules do not permit them to go to camp with your Troop, please call for information regarding provisional camp programs at Broad Creek.

Do you like hanging out at local concerts, fairs, and festivals?

Please consider joining our district membership team and coming out to these events to help us promote Scouting. Please contact Edie Neighoff at wedbneighoff@aol.com.

Popcorn

Wow! An additional 2% commission for those units who are signed up by June 1, 2008. You can sign up online at www.baltimorebsa.org. A popcorn seminar is being held in our district on July 28th at 7PM. Your unit receives additional commission when your popcorn kernel attends this or one of the other popcorn seminars offered around the council.

 

Duty to God

David Gamerman, Troop 18, has become the thirty-second scout to earn all four Jewish religious awards that are offered by the Boy Scouts of America. David is an Eagle Scout candidate, an Arrow of Light award recipient, and currently serves as the Order of the Arrow troop representative. Did you know that all Scouts and Venturers may earn the religious emblems of their faith? For more information on the program go to www.praypub.org. Materials are available if you would like to make a presentation on religious emblems to your unit or your place of worship. Please contact Kathy Herche for additional information.

Scouting for Food

Thanks to the following units for participating in Scouting for Food: Crew 289, Pack 327, Pack 634, Pack 336, Pack 891, Pack 143, Troop 327, Troop 1910, Troop 634, Troop 18, Troop 97, Troop 307, Troop 315, and Troop 143. A total of 10,000 pounds was collected in an effort to stock local food pantries.

District Friends of Scouting

Thank you to all those units who have finished or scheduled their Family Friends of Scouting presentation. Family FOS chair Don Martin and the rest of the Arrowhead District Finance team presenters have been very busy! Assistance is always needed. Please contact Don at 410-788-3077 or dmartin47@verizon.net. If you would like to volunteer to serve on the Finance Committee please contact: Michael Neuman, Vice Chair for Finance at (410) 788-8177 or mjneuman@comcast.net.

Training and Recognition

Now easier than ever! We are offering more trainings in an effort to improve the program of every unit in the district. New Leader Essentials is being offered at twilight camp. That’s EIGHT TIMES in the next two months! This is required training for all leaders. New Cub Scout leaders, leaders changing positions, and those who are not yet trained may take advantage of the trainings offered in June, July, and August. Please check the district web-site for more details – www.bacarrowhead.org. Numerous trainings are offered online at www.scouting.org - Troop Committee Challenge, Youth Protection, Safe Swim, Safety Afloat, and supplemental trainings including a new feature on Bullies. Don’t wait – log on now!

If your unit or your area can assemble ten or more Scouters for a specific training we can come to you. Call to schedule an appointment for a personal training!!! Let’s get our leaders in Arrowhead trained for the position they serve and remember, every boy deserves a trained leader!!! If you have any Council or District training questions please call Vance L. Kovach Sr., Training Chairman, 410-455-0398 or email vlk57@comcast.net.

Remember - if you are a unit leader, or committee member check the requirements for your unit leaders for adult leader recognition. There are many leader knots available for leaders, and many people do not seek out personal recognition. If you are aware of any of your leaders who should be recognized, please turn them in and they will be recognized at the annual District Dinner. If you have any question about the program, or what the requirements are do not hesitate to call for information. Adults like to be recognized for a job well done! If you have any Recognition questions please call Vance L. Kovach Sr., Training Chairman, at 410-455-0398 or email vlk57@comcast.net.

Advancement

During the September Roundtable we will again be having a Troop and Pack Advancement workshop. We would like the Advancement Chair from every Pack and Troop to attend. We will be reviewing the online advancement system, following up on Webelos to Scout advancement, and Bobcat Bounce – the incentive for early recognition of new Cub Scouts. We will be providing both the troops and packs with suggestions, program literature, and helpful handouts. This will be a combined workshop, separate from the Roundtable.