How These Members of the Scouting Community Recognize Passover
In our “A Scout is Reverent” series, Scouting Wire takes a look at how Scouting families across the country observe a variety of religious holidays of their own faith and support fellow unit members in theirs. Join us as Bruce Chudacoff, Chairman of the National Jewish Committee on Scouting shares a unique perspective on the importance of Passover!
For those who may not be familiar with Passover, can you please tell us a little about this holiday?
All Jewish holidays begin at sundown. Passover is an 8-day holiday which, this year, begins Wednesday, April 8. The date of the holiday is different each year because the Jewish calendar is a lunar one, not a solar one. All major Jewish and other religious holidays can be found on the BSA Calendar of Religious Observances.
Passover observes the Exodus from Egypt approximately 3,500 years ago. The story is that the patriarch Jacob’s son, Joseph, was sold into slavery by his brothers and ended up in Egypt, where he was falsely imprisoned. While there, he was able to interpret the dreams of two of the Pharaoh’s advisors. When no one could interpret the dreams of the Pharaoh, one of them remembered Joseph. He was brought before the Pharaoh and interpreted his dreams to mean that Egypt was about to have seven years of good harvests followed by seven years of famine. The Pharaoh appointed Joseph to help Egypt through the famine. He later brought his family there. Over a period of 420 years, Joseph’s following grew from the 70 people in his family to over 1 million people. The Egyptians enslaved these people and forced them to build cities.
Moses was born in Egypt and raised by the Pharaoh’s daughter in the court. When he became an adult, he saw an Egyptian beating an Israelite. Moses killed the Egyptian and was banished. At the age of 80, Moses encountered the presence of God in a bush that burned but was not consumed by the fire. God instructed him to take his brother Aaron and return to Egypt where he was to free the Israelites. Moses spoke to the Pharaoh and asked him to let the people go. When the Pharaoh refused, God brought 10 plagues upon the Egyptians, beginning with turning the waters of the Nile River to blood and ending with the killing of the first born children of Egypt.
The term Passover comes from the story about how the Angel of Death struck Egypt at midnight. The Israelites had been instructed to sacrifice lambs, eat them at a communal meal that night, then place blood from the lambs on their doorposts. The Angel of Death “passed over” the Jewish homes. Shortly thereafter, the Israelites left Egypt, crossed over the Sea of Reeds, and headed to the promised land of Israel, which they reached after 40 years in the wilderness.
The Torah, the Five Books of Moses, (Old Testament) contains the instruction that every Jew must relive the Exodus and tell the story of it to their children on Passover. This is done on the first two nights of the holiday at the seder, which means “order.”
This year, because of social distancing, many Jewish families cannot come together for the seder and are holding virtual seders over the Internet.
Do you know Scouts who have Scouting traditions connected to this holiday?
Since Passover is a family holiday, the seder is not often celebrated in units. However, some interfaith units have been known to have their own seder during or before the holiday to learn the story of Passover.
For Scout units that may have a member of Jewish faith, what are some considerations and ways to show support for their fellow Scouts who observe this holiday?
The proper greeting for Passover is Chag Sameah, which means, “have a good holiday.” Scouts who have Jewish friends can wish them a Chag Sameah. They can ask their Jewish friends to tell them the story of Passover and share a piece of matzoh with them.
Special thanks to Bruce Chudacoff, Chairman of the National Jewish Committee on Scouting for sharing this with Scouting Wire.
Chuck Brasfeild Selected as Scout Executive of Denver Area Council
Please join us as we congratulate Chuck Brasfeild, who will serve as Scout executive of the Denver Area Council in Denver, Colorado, effective May 1, 2020.
Chuck began his Scouting career in 1998 as a district executive at the Central Florida Council in Orlando, Florida. He served in various positions at the council over the next ten years, the last three as director of field service. In 2009, he was selected to serve as Scout executive of the Flint River Council in Griffin, Georgia, and then in 2014, as Scout executive of the Golden Empire Council in Sacramento, California.
Chuck is a basketball coach, Scout leader, and enjoys anything outdoors. His current hobbies are chicken farming and manual labor, which apparently go hand-in-hand.
Chuck and his wife, Katie, have three children: Will (12) a Tenderfoot, Robbie (15) a Life Scout, and Laura Grace (19) who has served on Jamboree staff twice as a member of the skate park staff.
In the comments below, please help us send Chuck our well wishes as he joins in partnership with the volunteers and staff of the Denver Area Council to deliver quality Scouting experiences to the young people of the communities they serve.
Randy Saunders Selected as Scout Executive of Southern Sierra Council
Please join us as we congratulate Randy Saunders, who will serve as Scout executive of the Southern Sierra Council in Bakersfield, California, effective April 16, 2020.
Randy began his Scouting career in 1994 as a district executive at the Gulf Ridge Council in Tampa, Florida. He served as a senior district executive, field director, program director, and camping director at the council before moving on to serve as a program director and later director of field service of the Great Southwest Council in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Randy is an Eagle Scout and Vigil Honor member of the Order of the Arrow, who enjoys backpacking, golf, and traveling.
Randy and his wife, Nicole, have one son named Isiah, who is a student at the University of New Mexico.
Please help us send Randy our well wishes in the comments below as he joins in partnership with the volunteers and staff of the Southern Sierra Council to deliver quality Scouting experiences to the young people of the communities they serve.
Scouting at Home Web Conference From March 26
If you have not previously registered for an account, please do so by clicking on the registration link below. To fully utilize the capabilities of the BSA Brand Center, you must be logged in every time you use the tool. This will allow you to customize and download "Dynamic Templates" for your specific marketing needs. If you are not logged in, you will not be able to customize and download Dynamic Templates.
The BSA and the Marine Corps League (MCL) Strengthen Relationship to Support America’s Youth
Article submitted by Wendy Kurten, Northeast Region & Western Region Team Lead / National Alliances Director /Law Enforcement Exploring Staff Advisor
The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) and the Marine Corps League (MCL) have agreed to initiate a plan of mutual support to foster the ideals of Americanism and patriotic volunteerism among America’s youth. We encourage Councils to expand their involvement of support for causes specific to the Marine Corps League and our nation’s veterans at large. The Marine Corps League will encourage and expand their involvement of Detachments in support of BSA programs toward our mutual goals for a better and more patriotic America.
The Marine Corps League believes strongly that our youth are our future and that it is our responsibility to prepare them for that future. The Scout Oath and Law that the BSA instills in youth is a strong foundation for future success. The Boy Scouts of America and Marine Corps League are excited about formalizing and strengthening our relationship and the future opportunities for us to work together to support America’s youth!
The Memorandum of Mutual Support and the Marine Corps League Community Award can be found in the Marketing & Membership Hub. Find out more about your local Marine Corps League visit: www.mclnational.org.
Scouting Wire would like to thank Wendy for submitting this article.
Revving Up Your Community Campaigns
Article submitted by Brooke Parker, Development Director at the Pathway to Adventure Council
Article submitted by Brooke Parker, Development Director at the Pathway to Adventure Council
Fundraising can be challenging but also enjoyable. With fundraising goals set high for many charities, the task can seem overwhelming. In Scouting, we have amazing volunteers who range from stay-at-home parents to presidents of the PTA/PTO and those who are lawyers, doctors, judges, farmers, company owners, CEOs and the list goes on. Through Scouting and watching their child, niece, nephew or sibling go through the program, they are the key to sharing the Scouting benefits.
The community campaign in Scouting is a unique concept that we can leverage in a positive way to raise money. Yes, it is important to leverage people outside of Scouting! Also, we can utilize our many Scouting related individuals who are connected with the BSA in some way. Why do it by yourself? There are thousands of parents and volunteers in our units who can help connect us to the right people in the community.
Here are 5 areas below to rev up your community campaign.
- Cultivating relationships is a huge factor with the community campaign. It starts with getting to know your affluent units and areas that have the capacity to donate above the average Friends of Scouting gift. Once relationships are formed with the quality volunteers, there needs to be clear guidelines of what the goal is and the steps to achieve that goal.
- Identifying your chair! We as professionals know we can’t do it alone. Working with the nominating committee is one area to look in finding your chair for the campaign. The vetting process has started with the nominating committee and once identified and acceptance of the position you can begin the planning process on how you will accomplish the goal along with the agreed upon tasks. Also, your council board could provide some recommendations!
- Building your committee. Since you have your chair, next is looking for individuals who worked on the committee in prior years. They may have enjoyed working on the committee or might have contacts to add to the prospect list. Additionally, they could help with adding new individuals on the committee. Some people are not comfortable asking others for money. However, they may be willing to open up their rolodex and help make introductions.
- Increasing a FOS gift. If we do a great job in our prospecting and evaluating of our prospects we will build on the plan. Analyzing a prospect’s financial ability to give, sets the bases of what we can ask for. We need to stop, listen and understand the individual’s comfort level with the cultivation and solicitation process. Then we have to ask!
- Mission accomplished! Characteristics of a success campaign are campaign kickoff, meeting updates and celebration. Behind the scenes efforts are the staff advisor and chair following up on the progress. Once you work the plan, create a positive enjoyable campaign and recognize the volunteers, then you all can be proud of the mission to bring more young people in scouting and impacting lives for a lifetime.
Scouting Wire would like to thank Brooke for submitting this article.
Council Market Analysis Is Now Available for You
Councils can now access the latest Council Market Analysis (2020). The analysis is based off your 2019 year-end membership with LDS units removed.
This tool will help you:
- Identify areas you are underserving in your district/council
- Target your areas of growth opportunity
- Understand the population that you are targeting – what are their demographic characteristics, how you can best reach them
There are three components to Council Market Analysis:
- A PDF document with a demographic breakdown (income, ethnicity, Mosaics, etc.) on the youth enrolled in your program and the youth population in the council (TAY). This document also contains a list of opportunity zip codes for growth planning.
- An excel file including the membership and TAY for each zip code in the council.
- An excel file with the top Mosaics in each zip code in the council.
To access Council Market Analysis on MyBSA:
- Login to MyBSA.
- Go to the Resources page.
- In the BSA Resources box, select “Council Market Analysis Reports.”
- Councils are categorized by region, area, and headquarters city.
To access Council Market Analysis from SharePoint:
- Go to: https://boyscouts.sharepoint.com/sites/000MembershipInsightsandPlanning/Shared%20Documents/
- Login to the Memberships and Insight SharePoint Site.
- Go to your council folder. The associated Council Market Analysis will be found in a folder labeled “Council Market Analysis.”
There is also training available on how to use the Council Market Analysis.
Employees can access this course by logging onto MyBSA:
- Go to resources.
- Find the “Scouting University-Employee Learn Center” link in the BSA Resources box.
- Scroll down the Home page and, on the bottom, you will see a link called “Learning Library.” Click on this link.
- Click on the Learning Library heading which will appear in the box on the next screen.
- Select “Council Market Analysis v2.”
Volunteers can access this course by logging onto My.Scouting
- Go to the Member Learn Center.
- Click on “Course Catalog” at the top of the Home page.
- Scroll down the page to Council Market Analysis and click on it. You will find it under “Expanded Learning.”
- Click “Add Plan” once the Council Market Analysis Learning Plan is displayed.
- Open the Learning Plan.
- Select the “Launch Course” button for Council Market Analysis v2
If you have any questions about Council Market Analysis, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Allen Endicott Selected as Scout Executive of Crossroads of the West Council
Congratulations to Allen Endicott, who will serve as Scout executive of the newly established Crossroads of the West Council in Salt Lake City, Utah, effective April 1, 2020. The Crossroads of the West Council was created when the Trapper Trails Council, the Great Salt Lake Council, and the Utah National Parks Council consolidated to enable the Scouting community in Utah to meet the ongoing mission of providing the area’s foremost youth program of character development and values-based leadership to youth across the state.
Allen began his Scouting career as a district executive at the Trapper Trails Council in Ogden, Utah, where he later became the program director. In 2005, he was selected to serve as Scout executive of the Annawon Council in Norton, Massachusetts, then moved on to become Scout executive of the Puerto Rico Council in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico. In 2013, Allen returned to the Trapper Trails Council to serve as Scout executive.
Allen is an Eagle Scout who enjoys camping, visiting national parks and historic sites, and playing the piano.
Allen and his wife, Beckki, have three children and one grandchild.
Please help us congratulate Allen in the comments below as he joins in partnership with the volunteers and staff of the Crossroads of the West Council to deliver quality Scouting experiences to the young people of the communities they serve.
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Todd Walter Selected as Scout Executive of Las Vegas Area Council
Please join us in congratulating Todd Walter as Scout executive of the Las Vegas Area Council in Las Vegas, Nevada, effective April 1, 2020.
Todd began his Scouting career as a district executive at the Baltimore Area Council in Baltimore, Maryland. He moved on to become the field director and later finance director at the North Florida Council in Jacksonville, Florida. Todd continued his career as director of field service of the Dan Beard Council in Cincinnati, Ohio, and then was selected to serve as Scout executive of the Central North Carolina Council in Albemarle, North Carolina. He most recently served as the area director of Area 4 in the Central Region.
Todd is an avid outdoorsman who enjoys traveling with his family, boating, fishing and pheasant hunting.
Todd and his wife, Lisa, have two adult children.
In the comments below, please help us welcome Todd to his new role in the BSA as he joins in partnership with the volunteers and staff of the Las Vegas Area Council to deliver quality Scouting experiences to the young people of the communities they serve.
Four Tips to Help You Find What You Need in the BSA Brand Center
The BSA Brand Center is full of resources to help you promote Scouting in your community.
Much like a library, it offers a curated collection of assets, including photos, videos, fliers, templates, and much more. Of course, digging through everything in the Brand Center to find what you need could be a time-consuming process, but there are search tools available to help you. It’s important to know that, as you use those tools, there are some search tactics particular to the Brand Center that might be a little different from the search tools you may be used to using elsewhere.
Here are a few tips to help make it easier for you to find what you need:
1. When you use the search box on the Brand Center, remember these two rules: All verbs end in “ing” and all nouns are plural. For example, you’ll find more items if you search “swimming” instead of “swim” and “kayaks” rather than “kayak.”
2. You can skip the search box altogether and browse through a list of keywords. On the left-hand side is a filter rail, scroll down to “Keywords” and click “more.”
Scroll through the list and select keywords relevant to your search. Much like walking though your favorite store with a plan to get “just one thing,” you could find other items you didn’t know you were looking for!
3. Another somewhat new addition to the Brand Center are transparent .png files for most logos and insignia. Simply log in to access them.
4. And, finally, for those who are BSA professional staff, you can go straight to BSA Digital Assets by clicking on the profile icon at the top right-hand corner of the Brand Center screen and selecting “BSA Digital Assets” from the dropdown menu.
In BSA Digital Assets, you can find thousands of stock images taken by BSA photographers at a variety of Scouting events and many more logo and insignia files (merit badges, council logos, etc.) to use freely for your recruitment and retention projects. Volunteers should work directly with their council professionals if access to specific imagery from BSA Digital Assets is needed.
Have more questions about the Brand Center? Ideas about how to improve it or helpful resources we could add? Let us know by filling out this survey. We’re always looking for ways to improve.
Mark Francis Selected as Scout Executive of Far East Council
Congratulations to Mark Francis, who will serve as Scout executive of the Far East Council in Okinawa, Japan, effective April 1, 2020.
Mark began his Scouting career as a district executive at the Utah National Parks Council in Orem, Utah. He moved on to become a senior district executive, Scoutreach director, and later field director at the Las Vegas Area Council in Las Vegas, Nevada. In 2008, he was selected to serve as Scout executive of the Greater Wyoming Council in Casper, Wyoming. In 2012, he was promoted to director of the LDS-BSA Relationships Office in Salt Lake City, Utah, and in 2018, he took on the additional role of membership growth coach in the Western Region.
Mark is an Eagle Scout, NESA Outstanding Eagle Scout, and Vigil Honor member of the Order of the Arrow. He enjoys running, gardening, model trains, Japanese origami, and spending time with his family.
Mark and his wife, Nettie, have ten children. All of their children are involved in Scouting, and their two oldest sons are Eagle Scouts.
Please help us congratulate Mark in the comments below as he joins in partnership with the volunteers and staff of the Far East Council to deliver quality Scouting experiences to the young people of the communities they serve.
Charles Flowers Selected as Scout Executive of Occoneechee Council
Please join us in congratulating Charles Flowers, who will serve as Scout executive of the Occoneechee Council in Raleigh, North Carolina, effective March 1, 2020.
Charles began his Scouting career as a district executive at the Robert E. Lee Council in Richmond, Virginia. He later became a senior district executive at the council before moving on to serve as a district director at the Heart of America Council in Kansas City, Missouri, and then as a development director at the Simon Kenton Council in Columbus, Ohio. In 2006, he was promoted to the National Council and served on the faculty of the Center for Professional Development (CPD), and in 2008, became the director of field service of the Laurel Highlands Council in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Since 2013, Charles has served as the Scout executive of the Connecticut Yankee Council in Milford, Connecticut.
Charles is an Eagle Scout and Vigil Honor member of the Order of the Arrow who enjoys reading, playing and watching basketball and spending time with family.
Charles and his wife, Carla, have two adult children.
In the comments below, please help us send Charles our well wishes as he joins in partnership with the volunteers and staff of the Occoneechee Council to deliver quality Scouting experiences to the young people of the communities they serve.
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