Math was never my strong suit — that’s exactly why I got into this business of words.
So when I see numbers presented in an easy-to-digest format, I take notice.
Case in point: These cool, new infographics that offer a glimpse into the BSA’s four high-adventure bases. Continue reading
Let’s face it. You won’t be the first on Mars, the first to summit a mountain, or probably even the first in line for the next new iPhone.
But serving on the inaugural jamboree staff at the Summit?
Yeah, there’s still time for that history-making first.
Some day, you’ll tell your grandkids you were an integral part of this once-in-a-lifetime event. But first you’ve got to register. Continue reading
Wanna get your hands dirty at the 2013 National Scout Jamboree? Pitch in and serve on staff.
There are plenty of cool jobs available to help pull off what’s sure to be a memorable jamboree experience at the new Summit Bechtel Family Scout Reserve in West Virginia.
Want to work at a high-adventure area, behind the scenes at an arena show, or even as a media correspondent for one of the many jamboree news outlets? Go to bsajamboree.org and peruse the open staff positions. Then, make your selection of the top three jobs that suit your interests and skills. Most volunteers are typically placed with one of their selections.
Staff volunteers age 16 to 25 (through July 14, 2013) will pay $425 to register. For volunteers older than age 25, registration is $850. Staffers also have the option of working half of the jamboree for $425 no matter the age of the volunteer.
For more information or to apply online, visit bsajamboree.org or send your questions to 2013jamboree@scouting.org.
There’s more to building a high-adventure base than shovels and bulldozers.
You also need some benevolent, big-hearted donors. And, thankfully, the BSA has philanthropists who are eager to help make The Summit dream a reality.
Yesterday, the Boy Scouts of America announced an additional $85 million in contributions to The Summit Bechtel Family National Scout Reserve in West Virginia. That brings the total funds raised to more than $200 million in roughly two years.
Among the latest group of generous givers: West Virginia philanthropist Jim Justice, who is president and CEO of Justice Companies Inc., which includes the iconic Greenbrier Resort where Justice and other contributors were honored yesterday. Justice’s gift will establish the James C. Justice National Scout Camp at The Summit. Continue reading
Have you registered for the 2013 National Scout Jamboree? If not, the time is now.
Zip-lining through the 175-foot-tall canopy of West Virginia’s towering Hemlock trees. Scaling sandstone rock-climbing routes in the New River Gorge. Biking, hiking, rafting—whew, we’re outta breath just thinking about it!
Aside from plenty of heart-racing activities, the next jamboree—spanning July 15-24, 2013—will bring together 50,000 youth and adults in Scouting’s brand-new digs: the Summit Bechtel Family National Scout Reserve, W.Va. Continue reading
You’ve never seen a jamboree like this.
Each time the BSA hosts its signature event, the result is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the Scouts and Scouters who attend. But 2013′s edition promises to bring the jamboree experience to a new level.
How? Well, just like in real estate, it starts with location. The big event will be the first jamboree at the new Summit Bechtel Family National Scout Reserve in West Virginia.
But there’s more to the BSA’s 18th national Scout jamboree than just the new digs. Continue reading
With its attention-grabbing colors, easy navigation, and useful information, there’s a lot to love about the new Web site for The Summit.
Scouts and Scouters will find that it’s a great place for up-to-the-minute information about the BSA’s fourth high-adventure base and the home of the 2013 National Scout Jamboree and 2019 World Jamboree.
The Summit’s new Internet home just launched today, but already there’s a ton of information Scouters will want to know.
Here are some highlights, organized in convenient bullet form:
The physical Summit is all about exploration, and the Web site is no different. In fact, I’m off to go look around some more right now.
Just a few months ago my Scouting magazine colleagues and I were taking the long walk down Thomas Road at Fort A.P. Hill.
The 2010 National Scout Jamboree seems like it was yesterday, but somehow, we’re already talking about the 2013 jamboree?
Man, time flies, doesn’t it?
As great as last summer’s event was, the BSA wants to make 2013′s spectacular even more special for Scouts, adult volunteers, and staff.
That’s the message from BSA leaders who visited the West Virginia site last week. The event was covered by the Charleston Gazette.
You’ll want to read the complete story at the link above, but here’s an excerpt about how The Summit will be eco-friendly:
Boy Scouts CEO Bob Mazzuca and national board member Jack Furst met Friday night with a “world-class” design team near the site of the future scouting center – called “The Summit: Bechtel Family National Scout Reserve.”
“The designers were just spectacular with their elegance,” Mazzuca said Saturday. “It’s all about sustainability, being earth-friendly and having a light footprint on the land.”
These are exciting times for The Summit. It’s the BSA’s fourth high-adventure base, will host the 2013 National Scout Jamboree (and beyond), and was just named host of the 2019 World Jamboree.
Follow the Summit on Twitter for up-to-the-second updates.
The World Scout Conference announced today that The Summit Bechtel Family National Scout Reserve will host the 2019 World Scout Jamboree.
That means that for the first time in 52 years, the global Scouting extravaganza will be held in the United States. (The 1967 World Jamboree was held in Farragut State Park in Idaho.)
It also marks the first time since the 1983 World Jamboree in Calgary, Canada, that a North American site has been host.
The Summit, located in Beckley, W.Va., is the BSA's fourth national high-adventure base, and it already had been named the permanent home of future national Scout jamborees, starting with 2013's event.
But today's news that the site will host the 24th World Jamboree is a big boost for the base—and for Scouts and Scouters who will help welcome the world.
"Scouts who attend the 2019 World Scout Jamboree at The Summit will, for the first time at a world jamboree, be able to participate in whitewater rafting, rock climbing, and mountain biking. We are very pleased that the conference saw the wealth of new and exciting activities that will be available at this site and will make it available to young people in the program," said James Turley, international commissioner.
Though the jamboree will be held in the U.S., the selection isn't just a win for the Boy Scouts of America. The 2019 bid was a joint effort among three Scout organizations: the BSA, Scouts Canada, and Asociación de Scouts de Mexico.
The selection is a first for Asociación de Scouts de Mexico, which has never had the honor of hosting this global event.
"The Asociación de Scouts de Mexico is proud to join Scouts Canada and the Boy Scouts of America to host the 2019 World Scout Jamboree," said association national president Omar Lugo Aguirre. "The opportunity before us is magnificent because the Asociación de Scouts de Mexico is a smaller Scout association and most likely would never host a world Scout jamboree on our own. Here, we will combine our talents and our cultures to bring what will prove to be one of the most incredible, successful jamborees ever."
Exactly 220 countries and territories in the world have Scout associations, and youth and adults from those countries who attend the 2019 World Scout Jamboree can arrange pre-jamboree tours of Mexico and Canada before heading to West Virginia.
Like Mexico and the U.S., Canada will have its welcome mat out in 2019, said Mike Scott, international commissioner for Scouts Canada.
"There has always been a wonderful relationship between Scouts Canada, the Boy Scouts of America, and the Asociación de Scouts de Mexico," he said. "The planning process for the 2019 World Scout Jamboree will help develop this friendship and spirit of cooperation even more. This event will involve and engage a huge number of our adult volunteer leaders and young people in a process that will immerse them in different cultures and cause them to be terrific ambassadors for Canada."
Before The Summit plays host, though, Sweden will get its turn. The Scandinavian country will host the 2011 World Scout Jamboree this July. Japan is on deck for 2015.
Then it's on to North America! Congratulations to The Summit and to all three Scout organizations as you prepare to welcome the world in 2019.
Additional gifts that add up to $50 million have brought the total contributions to The Summit Bechtel Family National Scout Reserve to more than $100 million, the Boy Scouts of America announced today.
The BSA, at a special presentation at the Summit site in West Virginia this morning, announced it had received a $25 million gift from The Suzanne and Walter Scott Foundation and a gift of an undisclosed amount from Mike and Gillian Goodrich.
Those gifts, coupled with some anonymous donations, brought the total announced this morning to more than $50 million. Add that to the $50 million already donated by the S.D. Bechtel Jr. Foundation, and the total has surpassed $100 million in less than a year.
That money helps ensure that the Summit is on track to host the 2013 National Scout Jamboree. It was announced today that the next jamboree will be held July 15–24, 2013. BSA officials also plan to put in a bid to host the 2019 world jamboree.
When it’s not hosting jamborees, the Summit will serve as the BSA’s fourth high-adventure base, helping complement existing bases in New Mexico, Minnesota, and Florida. Continue reading
