Last Day of Summer Camp

  

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

  

As we close out the Summer Camp 2009 blog, a few final notes...
1. We have posted slightly over 300 pictures from the week, out of an amazing 2,000 that Dan took. All of the pictures will be available on a DVD at the September Court of Honor.
2. Jay reports that he still hasn't found his missing tick. Please check your sons carefully to be sure they haven't "borrowed" Jay's pet.
3. It will not be surprising if some boys came home with less than expected, and others with more. There will be a "Lost-and-Found" at the party on Tuesday so please bring in any items that came home to the wrong address.
4. Steve's words below are kind but of course omit his own contributions, which are also nothing short of magnificent. The adults and Scouts at Camp each work as an "instrument", but it is Steve and Jay that taught us how to play together and turned us into a symphony. Steve hits all his own notes while keeping the rest of us on key and does so with grace and humor. There is really no way to do justice to his contributions in a few sentences but I am certain that all the adults who camp frequently with the Troop would agree that the boys are in exceptionally good hands and are receiving great gifts from him that will last long after their years as Boy Scouts.
-- Dave Shade
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EPI-BLOG
T804 Summer Camp 2009

From what I've heard the blog has been another hit with you all and I'm very glad. It's very important for parents to see what the Scouts are doing and to stay in touch and I think it has worked very well. I have talked about our blog with other Scout leaders and they all are impressed and "hey, we gotta try that." This week at camp was excellent as I think the pictures attest. They truly provide a very representative shot of the activities and the boys' enjoyment.
But I'd like to discuss the actual execution of camp for T804 tonight. I touched on it briefly today upon return and didn't really do it justice. I'm referring to the adult leaders who actually made it go work so well. Without them, your boys wouldn't have had anywhere near as good a time as they did. I know of troops who send just as many guys as we did, but with only two or three leaders. Frankly, I have no idea how they could possibly manage.
First of all, Joanne Principio and Larry Pratt were our first year camper mentors/guides. Now that they've done it, I'm sure they will agree with previous years' people that it is truly like herding three legged cats (right, Annie?). All kidding aside, they kept them all on track and in the proper places at the right times. The Blue Mountain Men (Camp Bashore's name for first year campers) hit every activity every time and finished all three merit badges (when Camp Bashore only programs them for one!) Bravo Joanne and Larry!
Paul Matthews provided stellar service at the Nature/Ecology center and also stepped up to teach several classes when the original counselor for them was not in camp this week. Not for nothing is he a meterologist/oceanographer and his weather forecasts were spot on too! (Although they seemed suspiciously similar to the NOAA weather radio forecasts....)
Shane Keating unfortunately paid the price for being our waterfront activities monitor with getting swimmer's ear, but that didn't stop him from doing the mile swim (with "Eat My Bubbles, Dan" printed on his back for Dan Schindler's benefit/prodding...)
Dave Dowling was indispensable in Campcraft, helping on numerous merit badges such as First Aid, Camping, Pioneering and especially Cooking, where the staff was overwhelmed with 37 enrollees after planning for 15 and having the counselor never teaching it before.
Tom Milley was a "godsend" as reported in front of the entire closing campfire audience by the Climbing/COPE instructor. He catalogued lines, helped with the climbing and generally relieved the burden from the instructor.
Doug Fish hauled our trailer bulging with packs and was right on target (sorry, I couldn't help myself...) with the Archery, Rifle and Shotgun ranges, again providing expert assistance to the range personnel who were most pleased to have him there.
Dan Schindler was everywhere with his all seeing camera providing you all with up close and personal photos of all your favorite Scouts and their activities. I emphasize that he took over 1300 pictures this week, so you can well try to imagine how hard it was to select just a few of the many good pictures he took every day to put in the blog and get balance in exposure for everyone. A HUGE round of applause for his efforts please!
Dave Shade - what can I say? After spending all day at Handicrafts making sure that our Blue Mountain Men (and a few others as well) completed their merit badges, he comes back to camp to work into the wee hours (check the time-stamps on the blog!) to put together the blog output for you all (after arguing with Dan over which pictures go in it!).
Finally, Jay Wilen. Robert E. Lee said of Stonewall Jackson that he was his strong right arm. Well, I can tell you that Jay is T804's strong right arm. He did all the detail managing of the schedule, leader program placement, advancement checking and not least of all, running the toothbrushing game every night. And oh yes, found time to go down to Campcraft where he helped with Cooking Merit Badge. He and I were the last ones to bed at night (I think it was 1:40 AM Friday morning...) And while maybe not up as early as the runners every morning, was up before they came back for sure.
These dedicated leaders all also found time to complete Camp Bashore's "Scoutmaster Merit Badge", which will be presented to them at the September CoH, along with all the boys' merit badges. I and Troop 804 are truly blessed to have such fine people who take such an ardent interest in our Scouting program and I cannot say enough about them (although it would appear I've tried here...)
Finally, I most sincerely thank you all for entrusting the most precious things in your lives, your Scouts, to me for this week of growing and learning and... uh... er.... oh yeah... FUN!!! I hope some of you will consider doing this for a week next year - you will not regret it.

Sincerely,
Steve Judson, SM

On the way...

We are on the road and right now look to be on time. Can't wait to get home!

Friday in Camp Bashore

  

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

  

After 5 days of almost perfect weather, we got some rain (I mean lots of rain) today. It was discovered that the only place it was not raining was the Trading Post. Friday is the last day to work on merit badges and the Scouts in Troop 804 were all over Camp Bashore scrambling to finish. I think you will be impressed by the results of the week when we celebrate our accomplishments at the September Court of Honor. The day ended with a campwide fire and Order of the Arrow ceremony. What a great week – thanks for sharing your son for the week.

-- Jay Wilen
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A few notes:

1. The patrol wearing the arm slings is The Indian Patrol, and the arm slings are a tribute to Nick, who missed Summer Camp due to a collarbone fracture the day before Camp began. He was obviously missed by his Patrol! We also missed all our other Scouts who did not attend Camp!
2. The Scouts should be ready for dismissal tomorrow (Saturday) at 1:30pm at Baldwin Hall and we expect to arrive about 1pm.
3. Today was a great finish to a great week! See you soon!

Thursday in Camp Bashore

  

  

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

Wow what a great day at Camp Bashore. After a night of some rainfall and distant rolls of thunder Troop 804 awoke to a fantastic summer morning. Today was a day when your Scouts made great progress on their Merit Badge work, with lots of swimming, sailing, shooting, campcraft, handicraft, science and a host of other great fun. Lots of badges were earned today and many more will be finished tomorrow. Even the leadership team got in on the fun by folks taking up positions on the breakfast and dinner serving lines, creating the MOAP (Mother of All Pizza’s) in a dutch oven, and a couple of hearty souls stroking it out in the mile swim (look out Michael Phelps). Tonight was capped off by a time of reverence at Vespers and a night owl swim under the stars, and some of the boys even got to take a closer at a few of those stars at their Astronomy Star Party. While our week is rapidly winding down to the end, there is still a lot of great fun to have and memories to be made. You should all be very proud of your Scouts as they are representing Troop 804 and your families in an exemplary fashion. Until tomorrow, signing off from Camp Bashore.

-- Paul Matthews
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Yet another wonderful day in Camp. Thursday in some ways can be a tough day because the pressure may really be on to finish up badges - but the staff here have been truly outstanding and the boys are just making great progress. Everyone - adults and Scouts - is walking around with a mixture of "can't wait to get home" and "sorry to see this end". The first-year Scouts are really learning how to confront and overcome difficulty (you will have to ask them about "gimp"). The first-year boys also built small mammal shelters, learned more about knife-and-axe safety, and used pastels to draw a nature landscape.

Older Scouts did a lot of swimming, canoeing, shooting, climbing , etc. Those in the Order of the Arrow also got a special "Ice Cream Social" at which the famous Camp Bashore Vulture made a guest appearance (see picture).

A group of nine took part in Day 4 of the T804-sponsored "Run for Life" (including Mr. Jay, yay!). Some of them have run every day and overall almost two dozen have woken up at 6:15 to run at least one day.

This morning, a number of the boys returned from their "outposts" (camping out for a night) as part of their Camping or Wilderness Survival merit badge classes. Too bad for them that it was the one night we've had rain. The boys must have been paying attention in "class" because even those that had to sleep in shelters they built themselves came back looking reasonably well-rested - and certainly none of them took a nap!

Although the boys have taken a minimum of two showers each, nobody will want to be near the laundry room when we get home. Some of the boys have "discovered" that if they turn a shirt inside-out, it is (in their minds) like putting on a "clean" shirt. The adults are still trying to teach that slurpee stains go all the way through! There is white-foam all around the edges of the camp as good evidence that Mr. Jay continues to require participation in the "toothbrushing game".

While things are going great, we all can't wait to get home!

-- Dave Shade

Wednesday in Camp Bashore

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

  

Well here we are at Camp Craft. The Pioneering MB Scouts are working on their lashing project, a quad support for a swing, assembled from logs and rope. Their Instructor (“Bubbles”) was impressed with the assembly so far.

The Emergency Preparedness MB Scouts worked on the training and items that would be needed for our Scouts to assist with an emergency. They also worked on a mobility list (which looks like a phone tree to me :) . Also, the list was accidentally mis-labeled “Immobility List” .

The brave souls of Cooking MB (who eat what they cook) made chicken noodle soup… from scratch! They also had extra “supervision”. The “Kitchen 911 emergency team” were Mr. Steve, Mr. Jay, and Mr. Dowling. Not only did they eat the soup (on plates!) but they came back for seconds.

The Scouts in Camp Craft are having a great Scout summer camp – a great time with learning stuck in.

-- Dave Dowling
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We’ve reached the halfway point of Summer Camp. Things seem to be going very well – the boys are engaged and having a blast.

The first-year boys are doing great with a difficult program. Today they spent time on leatherworking, art, and mammal study, with some getting time to shoot on the rifle range and some in the swimming pool.

This evening was supposed to be the “Troop Swim” but unfortunately some distant thunder forced a cancellation. The older boys have been all over camp with their activities and classes, from the shooting ranges at one end to the Nature Lodge at the other.

It took a little effort, but every boy has now showered. We do not know about the use of soap, but there was definitely water used.

Tonight, several of the older boys are out on their “Outpost” for either the Camping or the Wilderness Survival merit badges. Mail call has been a huge part of the in-camp routine and the boys cheer for each other with every piece announced.

Tomorrow is a big day for making substantial progress toward the completion of our Mr. Jay mandated merit badge goal of 140. We look to be well on our way.

-- Dave Shade

Tuesday in Camp Bashore

  

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

Tuesday at Camp Bashore

Another beautiful day at camp! A little warm and humid this afternoon. I spent the day with "Mr. Larry" and the Blue Mountain Men (as the first year Scouts are called). They had loads of fun an even made teepee fires in the fire rings. It is wonderful seeing this camping experience through their eyes.

Tonight we wwore our bright orange (or pretty green) T804 shirts to dinner (as it was Hawaiian Night and this was our closest match to Hawaiian shirts). And a special dessert treat for everyone were birth cupcakes for Kurt Hufker and Justin Keagy.

The week is flying by so quickly, and in no time we will be pulling back into Baldwin. See everyone then.

Joanne Principio

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Well hello Scouts, Scouters, family and friends. Troop 804 is hosting the run-for-life program which is a mile run every morning at 6:30 sharp. We had 10 participants on Monday and 15 this morning followed by a polar bear swim in the pool. Today was another beautiful weather day. It started off with just enough chill in the air that the new troop hoodies were prominently displayed at the flag ceremony and breakfast. Speaking of breakfast; we had scrambled eggs with mixed n potato cubes and bacon. Since today was National Milk Chocolate Day, plenty of that was available at the tables along with prune, grape and orange juice along with ice cold water. The Blue Mountain Men (first year scouts affectionately called the Blue Man Group amongst the leaders) continue their scout skills and work towards leather working, art and mammal study merit badges. The Trading Post is a big hit for the Mystery Slushie, 50 cent pretzels; Swedish fish and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream (think Chunky Monkey – pint size).

The fun meter was maxed out on day 1 and day 2 was ‘…ultra-max’ fun. Lunch was chicken breast sandwiches, chips, salad, fudgecicles and drinks. The whole camp recognized Kurt Hufker and Justin Keagy with a birthday song.

Quotable Quotes:

SM: ‘So, since you got mail and I won the bet, what time are you going to buy me that ice scream?’
Scout: ‘Oh, how about half-past never…!!!’

ASM: ‘Where you headed?’
QM: ‘To get supplies for the latrine, but I am not going to use it for the whole week; it stinks!!!’

Expect a letter soon from your son. They couldn’t go to dinner Tuesday without turning in a letter to Mr. Jay for mailing. Dinner was pork chops, corn, spiced potato wedges, salad and apple cobbler. Of course, plenty of chocolate milk all around.

Last night was the Troop open shoot with the rifles and tonight we had the Campwide Sports Challenge. Hilarious – It was all done via patrols and there were 4 stations consisting of blind-folded canoeing with commands given from shore, croquet course building challenge with only twine and twigs to build and play, an orienteering course done from under a tent and troop guide directions and lastly - in true scout skill fashion - make a fire, boil water, cook spaghetti noodles and then tie eight different scout knots with the cooked noodles.

We finished off with mail call, birthday celebration for Kurt and Justin via a dutch oven cupcakes and finally a tooth brush game. The boys gave a big cheer out for a great day. I’m exhausted. Good night.

YIS - Dan Schindler

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[Ed. note - the picture of a boy shooting a shotgun is Josh Keating - and he did hit the clay pigeon in flight. We have heard that some may be having password issues with accessing this blog... we are sorry and will look into it although we are not having any trouble from here. Reports are that just trying again a few times does seem to work.]

Tue PM

Gorgeous afternoon! Camp-wide Scout games this evening. We have two fun-o-meters in the Troop and the boys are consistently dialing in above "max". Mail call last night was great but we now have enough sugar in Camp to last for years.