Bob Confer's speech from our annual dinner

If you were unable to attend our annual dinner this past weekend, here's the transcript of Council President Bob Confer's speech...

If you’re a sports fan, you know that the sports world was full of improbable comebacks over the past year.

Down 3 games to 1 in the NBA Championships against the best team in history, Lebron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers came back to win it all.

Then, in the Major League Baseball playoffs, the Chicago Cubs also came back from a 3-1 deficit to eliminate more than a century of misery.

And, last week….we got to see one of the most exhilarating Super Bowls ever when Tom Brady willed the Patriots to a win after being 25 points down.

Those were all awesome wins.

But they’re sports.

They're fun to watch, but do they really impact our day to day lives?

No.

But we were all involved in a comeback that did matter.

Everyone in this room contributed to a team effort that saw us win our own championship of sorts.

To understand that comeback, let’s go back in time to 2015.

2015 was not a good year for us. The Council’s finances were in the red. Camp attendance was down. Membership was down by more than 6%.

A lot of Councils would have a hard time coming back from that. Some never do.

But, like LeBron James and Tom Brady, everyone in this room, and all of our teammates not with us tonight, had a commitment to excellence…a sense of urgency…a desire to win our game ---- which is the game of Scouting.

2016 was one of those magical comebacks.

We went from being down in the dumps, to reaching the pinnacle --- in 2016 we became a Gold Council, something that less than 25% of all councils achieve in a given year.

That’s means we are the best of the best.

Fall recruitment was more than 20% higher than 2015 despite significant and immediate drops in the population of available youth in the area that surpassed 20% over the past 4 years.

Now, 1 in 4 boys who are of Cub Scout age across our 5 counties are Cub Scouts.

Camp attendance exploded, not only because of Zion’s camp but because of our scouts having a renewed interest, a new love affair, with our wonderful camps.

For the 10^th year in a row we led all of NY in camping.

And, the Council made money.

We all came back.

The Council succeeded because YOU succeeded.

YOU are the Council.

It’s a team effort ---  from our packs, troops and posts….to our district and council committees…to our executives and office staff…to our camp staffs and rangers.

It takes a lot of people with special talents to make a sports team win….it takes a lot more people with more special talents to make a Council win.

And how do we measure our wins?

Being a Gold Council is nice…as a matter of fact, it’s pretty darn awesome.

But that’s not our Super Bowl trophy or World Series ring.

What’s our trophy?

It’s the smile on the cub scout having fun at the Pinewood Derby.

It’s the young man becoming having that Eagle Scout medal pinned to his uniform.

It’s the pride we take when one of our scouts goes on to become a great husband, father and citizen.

Our trophies don’t sit on a shelf.

Our trophies are real.

So, thank you for engineering that comeback in 2016 and for being at the top of your game.

You do things that really matter.

And, America can’t thank you enough for that.

Thank you!

Jim Van Arsdale, scouting friend, has passed away

The Council and the whole community lost a great friend and supporter in Jim Van Arsdale who passed away at 97 years of age. An incredibly nice and caring gentleman, Jim has had a life-long affiliation with the Boy Scouts that saw him earn the Eagle and Silver Beaver awards, serve as a leader, and run countless fundraisers. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of this incredible man.

Here is Jim's obituary:

http://www.robinsonandhackemer.com/index.php/obituaries/james_henry_van_arsdale_iii

Annual awards banquet

At the Iroquois Trail Council, Boy Scouts of America annual Volunteer Awards Dinner held Saturday, volunteers Lisa M. Brown of Batavia and Nathan D. Pace of Medina were honored with the council’s highest award: the Silver Beaver Award.

The Silver Beaver is a National BSA award that recognizes distinguished service to local youth.

Each recipient is a long-tenured volunteer who has also made significant contributions of service to their local community.

Brown’s decade-long scouting service includes a variety of roles including Cub Scout Den Leader, Webelos Leader, Training Committee Member and Fundraising Chair. Brown is employed in the administrative offices of the Batavia City Schools. Part of an active Scouting family, both her son and daughter have been active in Scouting, and husband Bill is currently a Scoutmaster in Batavia.

Eagle Scout Pace’s long Scouting history includes a former tenure as a Scoutmaster among numerous other direct leadership roles. An attorney in Orleans County, Pace also currently serves as president of the Buffalo Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, where he has been instrumental in helping to develop new leadership training and camping opportunities for youth and adults throughout Western New York.

The council was itself recognized by the Boy Scouts of America with the 2016 Journey to Excellence Gold Award for program excellence.

Local Cub Scout and Boy Scout leaders were recognized for program excellence in the areas of advancement, camping, membership recruitment and retention, and helping Scouts to meet their funding needs.

Several youth members were also recognized, including Explorer Ashley Chapman (Caledonia) and Boy Scout Tyler Mutka (Corfu).

A member of the Caledonia Fire Department’s Explorer Post, Chapman was recently named the Western New York Volunteer Firemen’s Association’s 2016 Explorer of the Year. Exploring is the coeducational young adult program of the Boy Scouts of America.

Mutka topped the list of 2016 popcorn sellers with Popcorn Sales of $5,125. The sale raises money for Scout programs, and also qualifies Mutka for a national college scholarship program. This is Mutka’s sixth year as top seller among Scouts in a five-county area. Several other Scouts will soon be inducted into the scholarship program.

The Iroquois Trail Council provides development, leadership, and life skills to more than 2,500 youth in Orleans, Niagara, Genesee, Wyoming and Livingston counties. To contact the council or enroll, visit www.itcbsa.org or call (585) 343-0307.

Explore Post in Warsaw

Thinking about a career in emergency services, a medical career, or in public service or the military? Find out about the Explorer Program hosted by the Waraw Fire Department and Sheriff's Office, at 7 p.m. Feb. 13 at the Warsaw fire hall, Route 20A.

This informational meeting is for boys and girls between 14 and 18 years old interested in the program. Parents and guardians are encouraged to attend this free meeting.

For more information call Chrissy Ferrin (585) 297-2872 or Dave Greig (585) 322-5851 or Marily Werner, district executive of Iroquois Trail Council, Boy Scouts of America (585) 343-0307

This Explorer Program is sponsored by the Warsaw Fire Department in conjunction with the Wyoming County Sheriff’s Department Explorer Post.

Recording Scouting expenses on your tax return

The blog at Scouting Magazine has a post about how to deduct Scouting expenses on your tax returns: http://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2011/03/03/tax-time/

Niagara Chocolates sale

The council is once again coordinating a special fundraising activity designed to help every Scout to get to camp. Cubs and Scouts who attend our local camps will earn a 50% commission on these sale items.

The Niagara Chocolates Candy Sale is underway now with orders due on Feb 20, featuring an assortment of Easter and other spring-themed candies. Sales kits are now available at both the Lockport and Batavia Service Centers.

Sales kits are available at both the Batavia and Lockport Scout Shops.

Volunteers needed at Council level

The Iroquois Trail Council has some immediate needs for volunteers at the council level. The list of some of the open positions can be found below.

If you know of someone interested or someone who may be a good candidate, please contact Council President Bob Confer and Council Executive Jim McMullen via email. Bob’s address is bob@conferplastics.com and Jim’s is Jim.McMullen@scouting.org

Membership Chair: This is a critical and immediate need for the Council. We have been without a council-level Membership Chair for nearly a year and a half. This person would manage the membership and customer-directed marketing activities of the Council, overseeing a team that would also include district-level membership chairs and other volunteers. The typical workload of this role would be: One Council board meeting per month in Batavia; one Membership Committee meeting per month in Batavia; and behind-the-scenes planning, implementation and follow-up which may be 1 to 2 hours per week of "homework" (which has seasonal peaks with recruiting drives).

Council diversity champion: This new position will aid in our goal of bringing Scouting to underserved populations -- namely, African-American and Hispanic families within our four largest communities, Lockport, Medina, Albion, and Batavia. This individual will work closely with the Membership Chair, Council President and Council Executive in reaching out to church/school/community leaders of those communities and recruiting leaders and youth who will join our existing units. The diversity chair will report to the Membership Chair and attend one Membership Committee meeting per month in Batavia.  

Eagle Alumni committee – 4 total openings, 1 of which will be the chair: This new committee will begin to develop a number of Eagle alumni initiatives from outreach to regular get-togethers to scholarships to events recognizing our newest Eagles. This committee will meet every other month, likely in Batavia, and should be made up solely of Eagles. Workload outside of the meetings depends on the events/activities the committee is willing to undertake. The chair of this committee will report to and interact with the Council Executive and Council President.  

Cub Camp Coordinators meeting

This is just a quick reminder about this week's special Camp Coordinators Meeting, January 25 at the Council office in Batavia, 201 East Main Street, 7:00 pm, in the upstairs board room.

This meeting is for Camp Coordinators old and new. We'll review the details of how to plan your Pack's Cub Scout Summer Camp Experience, how to simplify the process for you and your Scout families, and how to manage the 'paperwork' that goes along with camp registration.

With the Camping season a short six months away, we will help you get ready by sharing all the tools and paper work you'll need to get every Scout registered and ready for Camp.

Key to your success over the next few months will be your enthusiasm as Leader or Camp coordinator at Den and Pack meetings. Any time you talk about Camp it should be clear that Camp is your Pack's summer program, that you expect each boy to attend. Camp is your extra-long summer Pack Meeting - one that's filled with wonderful, once a year activities and opportunities!

2017 camp launch

Klondike Derby 2017

The Council-wide Klondike Derby will be held February 24-26, 2017 at the Medina Conservation Club. For details about the event, download the info and registration packet here:

http://itcbsa.org/Joomla/images/Forms/2017/2017WinterClashofClansKlondikeRegistrationPacket.pdf

Annual recognition dinner

Okpik training at Camp Dittmer

There will be an Okpik cold weather training course offered at Camp Dittmer in February. Okpik is a combination of classroom & outdoor style training designed to make the participants aware of the physiology and psychological aspects of cold weather & winter camping, as well as the great variety of winter camping equipment that’s available or can be assembled from traditional 3 season gear. This training will give you the skills and confidence to lead a winter campout and ensure a safe and fun experience for all of your Scouts! The flier and registration form can be downloaded here as a PDF: http://itcbsa.org/Joomla/images/Forms/2017/2017OkpikWinterAdventureFlyer.pdf

ITC is gold

We're excited to share the news that the Iroquois Trail Council achieved Gold Level in the BSA's Journey to Excellence in 2016.

This is based on the cumulative results of every unit, every volunteer and every staff member in the Council. Thank you to each of you for the time and effort that you invest to bring an excellent and exciting Scouting program to your town and to our region.

This is a major accomplishment and a reason to celebrate. Typically, only 25% of councils across the country achieve Gold status. It's something we did in 2014, too.

Our scouts are positioned to succeed in Scouting and in life because of the top-notch programming they are given by you. They will grow up to be exceptional husbands, fathers and leaders. THANK YOU!

Lonsberry helps launch shotgun range fund drive

Today on Bob Lonsberry's show on WHAM 1180 we officially launched the initiative to build a shotgun and firearms instruction range at Camp Dittmer. This facility will complement our existing rifle range and give scouts access to a world-class shotgun shooting experience. You can donate to this project via the following website or you can mail a check to the Scout office in Batavia (the photo is an example of similar facilities...ours will look a little different):

https://boy-scouts-of-america-iroquois-trail.networkforgood.com/projects/23666-camp-dittmer-firearms-education-range

ITC's market share is high!

How important is Scouting to the fabric of the five counties covered by our Council? Consider this -- market share is a measurable used to determine the percentage of available youth in a given population who are in Scouting. Nationally, 12% of youth are in Cub Scouts or Boy Scouts. In our Council, just under 20% of all area boys are scouts. Think about that -- 1 out of every 5 boys in our coverage area are scouts! Wow!

ITC recruitment bucks local population trends

After a few years of major decline in Scouting all across the country, the ship is being righted. Right now, our 2016 deficit in scout enrollment in our Council is 29 scouts versus 2015. That's the closest to growth we've been since 2012. It's a testament to our Scouters, Scouts, and staff putting on an awesome programs at the pack, troop, district and council levels. To further understand how HUGE of an accomplishment this is, know that our portion of WNY is losing (or not replenishing) young people at unprecedented rates. Consider these examples: In the 2015 school year, the average class size for sixth through twelfth versus kindergarten through fifth were down by these percentages in the these school districts in our territory Barker 23%, Roy-Hart 22%, Wilson 21% and Newfane 12%. Almost every other school district in our 5 county Council is seeing similar declines. Think about that --- almost instantly, we have SUBSTANTIALLY fewer boys in our communities (the population decline of boys is numbered in the THOUSANDS), yet we are recruiting more of them as a percentage of the local population to be scouts. Keep up the GREAT work! Our Council and local scouts are truly blessed.

SCOUTING FOR FOOD FEEDS THE HUNGRY

The Council's annual Scout For Food drive was held in November and it was amazingly successful. Here is on example that highlights its significance: Cub Scout Pack 18 of Gasport collected 1,072 items of food for the Gasport food pantry at the Zion Lutheran Church. That is a HUGE quantity for a town as small as Gasport!

The Spook-O-Ree is on October 15th

Plan now to join us at the Genesee County Park on Saturday, October 15 for the annual Cub Scout Spook-O-Ree. Our gaggle of ghosts is putting together a fun-filled afternoon of Halloween fun. If your pack isn't coming as a group, individual registrations are always welcome. Click here for registration forms for packs and individuals:

http://itcbsa.org/Joomla/index.php/activities/council-wide/802-2016-spook-o-ree

Write for your school paper and promote Scouting!

With a new school year upon us, it's time to remind you about an awesome recruiting tool that all scouts have access to -- your school newspaper. I strongly encourage every pack or troop to have one scout, and a different one each time, submit an article to the school paper. Write about what your unit does on a regular basis or write about one specific adventure. Make it fun and interesting (just like Scouting is!). Hundreds of your fellow students will be reading your article and with it you have a perfect opportunity to recruit more boys. Also, when it goes to print, please scan the page and send it to Bob Confer at bobconfer@juno.com. We will post it here for everyone to see, encouraging more troops to use their newspapers as a recruiting tool.

Camp Dittmer storm damage

On Saturday evening at Camp Dittmer, Ranger Steve Croll has reported some significant storm damage with fallen trees, some damage to tents & platforms, power lines and other things.

Sunday, Steve worked on assessing all the damage and he also worked on reopening the camp roads. Steve is on top of things and has the immediate situation under control. He has made sure that there's not a crisis situation.

However, he's going to need help to clean things up. We are looking into organizing groups of workers who are available this week and this weekend, to come to Camp Dittmer to help clean up the storm damage. Our equipment is limited, so if you have additional equipment to use for this clean up detail, please bring it with you.

Upon arriving at Camp Dittmer, call Ranger Steve at 585-202-5050. Steve will be able to direct you to the area's that are currently being worked on.

For the weeks of August 15 thru August 26, Jim McMullen is out of the office and out of the area. We wouldn't want a critical message to wait in Jim's mailbox until he returns. Therefore, we are asking you to please contact either Jess Markel, 585-208-2542. Or Judy Anderson, 585-409-6109 during this time frame.