|
Railsplitter Day Camp
There has been conflicting information released about the location of the Railsplitter Cub Scout Day Camp. The actual location is Homestead State Park, Harristown, IL. We are working to get this corrected on the various web sites and sources.
May - June Trailblazer
The May - June Trailblazer is available now.
Rhodes-France Work Day
The Council Properties Committee is holding a Work Day at Rhodes France Scout Reservation on Saturday, May 11th from 9:00am – 3:30pm. Your help is needed!
The May workday will consist of several small jobs that the Properties Committee would like to get accomplished before the Summer Camp programs begin. This is the tentative list of projects.
Securing the new benches down in the Chapel
Replace the door on the pool pump room
Replace the door on the sound booth in the Firebowl
Repair screens on staff tent frames
Run a water line to Orion and Phoenix Campsites
Tree cleanup at Eagle’s Rest
Remove briars from the berm at the Range
Clean out the pool so it is ready to fill
Lunch will be provided to everyone in attendance. If you have questions about this work day please contact Dan Brookman at 217-539-4464.
If you are able to attend, please let Matt know how many you will have at the work day! These work days really do help make a difference at RFSR. The Properties Committee would like to thank everyone who has been coming out to help each month. Without the dedicated volunteers who have been participating, many of these projects would not be possible.
Akela Days Promo Video
Akela Days will be held at Evergreen Park in Effingham on June 7 & 8.Akela Days are a 2 day adventure in the outdoors for all Tiger Scouts with adult partner and Cub Scouts who are entering the 1st through 5th grades. Scouts arrive each
morning to begin the fun and head home each evening, just to do it again the next day!
Check out the video.
Webelos Woods
Webelos Woods 2013, July 18-21, will be offering all 20 Webelos pins!
These will be done in three 45-minute sessions each day so
each Scout can earn up to 3 pins during camp. Come join us
for a race around our camp, learn some of it’s history and
compete with the staff along the way. Enjoy time in your
campsite with our new schedule.
Read more . . .
2013 Cub and Boy Scout Program Booklet
The 2013 Cub and Boy Scout Program Booklet is being mailed to all scout families. An advanced copy can be downloaded from here. It is a very large file that will take a few minutes to download.
2013-2014 Council Calendar
The new council calendar is online here and in the menu system above.
2013 Spring Rendezvous
The Spring Rendezvous Committee would like to invite all Scouting units along with the general public to attend the 8th Annual Spring Rendezvous to be held May 17-19 at beautiful Wolf Creek State Park near Sullivan, Illinois. This year’s theme is Links to the Past; Maps to the Future. Scouts and Scouters will have the opportunity to step back in time with re-enactors representing several different time periods. Modern skills will be featured as well as looking into the future of outdoor activities. Several features will be brought back by popular demand: the Scout Auction and a potluck for Saturday night with the council providing the main dish. A Friends of Scouting Auction will also be held featuring donations from our vendors and re-enactors along with donations from local businesses. For more information, please contact Gerry Wood, Chairman, at 217-728-7361 or Ellen Watkins, Staff Advisor, at 217-620-7205.
The flier and forms are here.
FISCAL POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR BSA UNITS
This document contains answers to many of teh frequently asked questions on unit financial procedures.
Should our unit have a checking or savings account?
Does a pack or troop need its own tax identification number?
Who is responsible for the finances of the unit?
Should our unit consider insuring our unit equipment?
Can our unit deposit funds with the local council?
What happens to the unit funds and equipment should the unit dissolve?
When should our unit submit a BSA Unit Money-Earning Application?
Is our pack or troop considered tax-exempt by the IRS?
What is the IRS Form 990-N and does our unit need to file annually with the IRS a
electronic postcard 990-N?
Can our pack or troop be covered under the BSA’s group exemption?
Form SS-4 asks us for a “GEN.” What is that – and do we have one?
A volunteer suggested that our unit apply for its own tax-exempt status. Can we?
We can’t solicit gifts for our unit?
Does that mean people can’t make gifts to our troop?
Can gifts go to the local council to benefit our unit, then “pass through” the council to
us?
My local company has employee volunteerism grants and they will contribute to charities
where I volunteer my time. Can these gifts go to our unit?
Read the answers.
Camp Usage Form
The Camp Usage Form has been revised to reflect changes made at Rhodes-France. If your unit wants to request the use of any of the camp facilities please use the new form found in the resources menu above.
View the form here
Open Letter to Parents
September 17, 2012
Dear Scouting Parent,
We recognize you have entrusted to Scouting the development and safety of your child. We are honored by your faith in this organization and want you to know these are top priorities.
In this period of heightened awareness about youth safety, we want to share with you Scouting’s many important programs, policies, and procedures that help protect our members.
We are committed to consistently strengthening and enhancing our Youth Protection measures, and in recent decades, have expanded our programs significantly as more information and new techniques and technologies have become available to us. Recently, experts in youth safety and the media have acknowledged the strength of our Youth Protection programs in place today:
Read more
NEW FEATURE: Ask the Registrar
Valerie Green, the Council Registrar, has put together a frequently ask question article. Questions asked and answered this time include:
What is a ScoutParent?
How do I become fully trained?
When does my registration expire?
Why does the office require so many adult applications from me?
Check out the full article for the answers.
This information is also being added to the F.A.Q. section of the Help & Support tab above.
2013 Jamboree News
GET READY! The 2013 National Scout Jamboree is coming and it ain’t your father’s jamboree. We’re talking seriously high adventure, people! Whitewater rafting, zip-lining, rappelling, mountain biking, hiking, and more - with 50,000 of your closest friends at the brand new Summit Bechtel Reserve in the wilds of West Virginia. Start planning now to be a part of history at the very first jamboree at the Summit.
See the flier here!
Youth Protection
Recently, the Boy Scouts of America announced important changes to its Youth Protection policies. The purpose of these changes is to increase awareness of this societal problem and to create even greater barriers to abuse than already exist today in Scouting.
Youth Protection training is required for all BSA registered volunteers, regardless of their position.
New leaders are required to take Youth Protection training before submitting an application for registration. The certificate of completion for this training must be submitted at the time the application is made and before volunteer service with youth begins.
Youth Protection training must be taken every two years. If a volunteer's Youth Protection training record is not current at the time of recharter, the volunteer will not be reregistered.
To find out more about the Youth Protection policies of the Boy Scouts of America and how to help Scouting keep your family safe, see the Parent's Guide in any of the Cub Scouting or Boy Scouting handbooks, or go to
www.scouting.org/Training/YouthProtection.aspx online.
To take the training online go to https://myscouting.scouting.org
|
