Saturday, June 24, 2017

Morgan's Scout Camp Experience

This blog entry is by Morgan. It is to satisfy one requirement for the Communications Merit Badge, which is a required merit badge in the BSA. The following articles and information are his words and efforts.



Hi! My name is Morgan. I'm writing this blog for my communications merit badge. I want to share about my most recent experiences at scout camp. There are three parts I will write about, so please sit back and enjoy.



Part One: My Favorite Merit Badge
My favorite merit badge class was Welding. We learned about different machines and types of welding. We learned that welding can be a dangerous job, so we learned about things to wear to protect yourself while doing welding. We made a really cool statue by welding together two metals to form a fleur-de-lis, which is a scout symbol. It's really heavy! I'm proud of it though.
This class took a while to complete because we only had one machine to work with and six students learning together. We had to take turns! I got my turn on the last day of the week. I had two friends take the class with me, Anthony and Jacob. They had a good time too and also made statues. I would highly recommend this class to other scouts looking at a class schedule for scout camp.

 Part Two: The Silver Tomahawk Tribe
The very best part of camp for me was when I was called out by the Silver Tomahawks. They are a group of older boys who want to serve others at all times, like the scout oath says. It is a lot like the Order of the Arrow, but our area has a unique situation that allows for two groups to function the same way. Only one group gets to be named "OA", so the other is called The Silver Tomahawk Tribe. I was elected by my troop to participate as a Silver Tomahawk. All the scouts at camp sat together in front of the river, and the chapter chief stepped forward. He called my named first out of everybody there. One of the tribesmen came to get me and take me to the front where the chief was. All the others who were elected were also called. When we were all gathered, we were taken to the woods for our ordeal. To be elected, you have to have attended at least 3 scout camps, be at least 1st Class rank, and have received your camping merit badge. I am still new to the tribe, so I have a lot to learn, but I'm really excited to participate with them. They are some really cool guys!



Part Three: Why I Think You Should Be a Boy Scout Too
Scouting teaches you to serve other people at all times, to put others before yourself. When you can think like this, it makes you feel good about yourself. It teaches you how to work and become productive in our world. In this way and others, scouting prepares you for life. While you learn, you also make new friends and grow into a good person who knows how to have fun. There are a lot of opportunities to learn what you WANT to learn and to be recognized for the good things you do. Where else can you learn to ride horseback, to canoe, go repelling, do some kayaking and camp cooking all in the same week? If you would like to have awesome experiences, I encourage you to visit this website (https://beascout.scouting.org/)and find a scout unit near you. Good luck and Happy Scouting!

-Morgan Bailey, T107