ACD Blog

Knowing Your Job

2012-01-29T15:12:00.000-08:00

This topic came to me as I was reading a former staff member's rumination about his current position. Many of you know of whom I speak; a staff member that worked through the ranks of CP for many years and now is coaching varsity sports. His ruminations were introspective of his short career; first as a JV coach moving on to being a varsity coach. When he looked back at his first year he found that he was not only coaching but "playing" the game and "officiating" the game as well. What I took that to mean was that he wasn't doing his job as coach. I think he had a line like, "a player should play; a referee should officiate; and a coach should coach..." Of course when I first read this I did chuckle as my first take was that this is too simple.....a man should be a man; a woman should be a woman; a dog should be a dog........and so on. However his point is right on; although we may have experience and/or opinions on other people's jobs, we need to focus on what our job is at the time. If you don't do that, then you will get lost trying to manage things that you have no control over. I thought his reflection was very thoughtful and fitting of a person that I have developed a lot of respect for over the years I have known him, beginning from when he first worked for me until now.

In my career I employ an ethos which I term a "passionate indifference." Each day in the course of my work I deal with individuals who have potentially life threatening issues. Dealing with those "issues" is the easy part, dealing with the individual, or more importantly the family of the individual, is the difficult part. Even more so if you connect on a personal basis with the individual and/or with the family. If I could not separate my feelings from my objective decision making I would not be doing my job. I would fail in my responsibility to make the right decision for that individual......even when the right decision may mean that the individual is no longer with us. There are other people who work with me whose job is to care for the needs of the individual without having to make a decision about the individual, or care specifically for the family and not the individual at hand. There are people who I depend on for information and act as a resource to help me make my decision, but I am the one who has to decide. I cannot do everyone elses job and be successful. I am sorry I am speaking in generalities, but the specifics are not important. The important thing is that I know what my job is and focus on my responsibilities so I can be successful which in turn benefits everyone regardless of the outcome. I take great comfort reveling in success from afar than being immersed in the celebration........that is for someone else.

I hope my former staff member picked up this understanding of focusing on what he needs to do rather than trying to do everything else as he developed his leadership skills at CP. One of the hardest things for staff members who start at Camp Parsons and work their way through the seasons is letting go of what they want to do and embracing what they have to do. We hire young staff to be employed "scouts". In other words, they work for us to deliver the program and their focus is not on their own fun but making sure that those scouts who attend camp are being served. However the best part of their job is that they can do it while immersed in the program. They can be with the scouts, go on events with the scouts, jump the pier with the scouts. They can still be scouts but with a purpose driven by us. As a role model they are to be seen, heard and known by the scouts, indeed scouts should want to be like them. As staff members continue on through out their camp career they eventually become directors of various areas. It is at this point where their immersion must wane. Their job is not being in the "fray", their job at this point is making sure the staff in their area are in the "fray". The director develops the program in their area and they get their staff to put it on and engage the scouts when they visit the area. This will continue as they move up the staff leadership ladder. I have often said to every Program Director that I have worked with that if every scout attending camp knows you by name but does not know the name of all the younger staff members, then they failed at their jobs. It is the PD's job to make sure that their staff are engaging the scouts at the front line. Scouts should not be interested in who the Program Director is. The Program Director should revel in his/her success when they read the weekly evaluation sheets that heap praise on their staff by name. Then they have done their job.

At this point in my scouting "career" it is my job to develop and train the staff, support the development of program, deal with scout and staff disciplinary actions and generally support Ken in all the things that he is responsible for. It is not my place to sing songs, be in skits, present program or even be the on stage face of the staff (who would want to see my face?). I pick the right people and let them do what they do best. Sure they are given goals and guidelines but the application is left to them and that is their job. I am successful only when they are successful.....anything less, then I haven't done my job.

Minding The House

2012-01-28T15:34:00.000-08:00

Since my post about the MBC project, I have talked with a former staff member about some of the issues that we have dealt with that has led us to this decision of changing the cabin. We also discussed the frustration that we face when trying to provide excellent facilities for our staff who seemingly cannot take care of them. It has been mentioned to me before that it is usually only a handful of individuals that make housing or the bathrooms a "pig sty". I have no doubt that this is true, but then it saddens me to know that the majority allow it to happen. The funny thing is that I have lived through all this. I was a young scout my first season on the CP staff and it was a battle to keep my tent-cabin (wooden floor, partial wall wood/tent and ceiling tent) as clean as possible, but I did get it that way at the end of each week......despite my first roommate. Laundry was a chore, but I was able to muster the energy to get it done and although I often thought about emptying someones wet clothes onto the counter, I put them in the dryer......staff take care of staff. I know that things pile up, heck this happens in my current house today and I have to make a conscious effort to get rid of things I don't need. Unfortunately though, my idea of housework is to sweep the room with a glance.

Human nature must be that way. At my professional job we have a dedicated lounge that is a comfortable place to relax, have a beverage of soda, tea, coffee, milk, etc as well as a variety of snack foods; muffins, bagels, etc. My colleagues are well educated individuals all of whom have post-graduate degrees, married and have successful careers. So what do I face every time I walk into that lounge to get a cup of coffee? I find a small carton of milk (you know, the school sized ones) open, sitting on the counter with no one around. Someone doesn't like the creamer, so they go into the refrigerator, open a carton of milk, put just a drop or two into their precious coffee/tea and go on their merry way. If you did that home what would your mom or dad say......what would your wife say? So, do I throw it away not knowing how long it was there for or should I put it into the refrigerator? I open the refrigerator and there are seven......7....open cartons of milk.....???!!! You go to get a bagel or a donut or a muffin and the first thing you see is one that is partially torn apart. Someone didn't want a whole one, so instead they either tore a portion of one off or worse, they picked at it then left it behind. It was like the mice got to it. Look, eat it or use a knife to cut a piece off.....don't take your filthy hands and tear off a piece and leave us to mop up the crumbs you self-centered educated idiot!! You look around and find half empty soda pop cans, plates of food, plastic wrappings left on the counters and tables. What my educated colleagues need is a house mother to remind them of basic manners. Shameful.

......and now I expect my staff to perform or behave better?

I may not approve but I "get" the pile of wet clothes in the corner of the cabin, the un-made bed, clothes everywhere. What I don't get is the food. Why would you ever just let food go bad and rot because you just left it on your desk or the floor....and then why complain when the raccoons and mice show up for a snack?

However, to get to the root of the frustrations regarding our staff facilities is the physical damage done to our property. Season after season we some how cannot keep a door on its frame. I don't think that our staff goes around their home, their school or Seattle opening doors by kicking them open with their feet. Most people who are sentient usually reach out their arm and use their hand to turn the doorknob to open a door......apparently not our staff however. Maybe that is a Scout Physics law I have yet to define. Throwing things into the wall, putting holes through the walls, putting graffiti on the walls, I mean I could go on and on. The housing for staff is simple, but the worst we offer is a small cabin with bunk beds, an electric heater, lights and outlets which they might have to share with one or two of their peers. It protects them from the wind, rain and cold.....why wouldn't you take care of this? I could go on about the bathrooms but I try to keep this blog family friendly.

I am tired of designating money for repairing staff housing for things inflicted by the staff.....it takes away from other important things that we have to do. So as we renovate our buildings, I really have to think about how are we going to assure that they remain in good working order, at least for a few years. This may be a good start to get the staff to care for their home.

January Ruminations

2012-01-25T14:46:00.000-08:00

Alaska Airlines has always been a big supporter of the Chief Seattle Council as well as the BSA partly because the company embraces the values that the Boy Scouts stand for and as a result, the caliber of youth that come from the program. I was disappointed though when I learned today that the company has decided to stop printing its small "prayer" cards that accompany the food which is served in first class. These cards are usually one line items which are taken from the book of Psalms and do have the tendency to lean more towards the Christian faith than not. This has generated some discussions (at times vehement ones) from their passengers about the purpose and appropriateness of these cards. When they instituted this program many years ago (20-30 years I believe) it was based on an idea they found from another airline and they thought it was a good idea. I personally thought it was a nice touch and I am surprised by some of the negative reactions to that little card. That being said, the airline is a company that wishes to serve all and although they have the "right" to put out prayer cards they also wish to respect those who either have separate religious feelings or are either agnostic or atheistic and are offended by their presence. I can certainly understand their position as a) it will reduce some complaints, b) I doubt those who like the cards will be as vehement at their absence as those who were opposed of their presence and c) it probably will reduce some expense. For me, it really does not bother me one way or the other as although I thought they were a nice touch didn't really "move" me in any inspirational way.

All that being said, I am not a "bible thumper" in any way. Even though I am part of an organized religion I do have concerns about "institutionalized" religion. Any bureaucracy (including churches) are always fraught with human frailty. I know many "Christians" who have performed un-christian acts as I have observed agnostics be more "Christian" in their daily activities. This is not to be at odds with other religions outside of Christianity mind you. Simply put, going to a church doesn't make you any more of a Christian (or any other religion) than going to a garage makes you a mechanic.

What was that saying? Never bring up religion or politics in polite conversation.......

Camp has endured a fairly chilly period of time this past week. Ken was telling me that he was keeping his eyes on a couple of potential "problem" trees that were beginning to bend with the snow and ice. I often wonder if that was akin to watching "problem" scouts. They bend the wrong way when influenced by an outside malicious force and if they break under that strain, much like ice and snow on a large branch, they can cause expensive and possibly even irreparable damage. The problem is that you can take out problem trees.........that's not always the case for problem scouts. I guess one involves a chainsaw, the other is sending them out of camp. Not sure which one is for which though.

For all of you following the ongoing saga regarding Mystery Beach Cabin; well there is good news and bad news. The good news is that the cabin will be saved, the bad news is that it will no longer house staff under the age of 21.....indeed, it may well be designated as the commissioner cabin. The renovation schedule is set; the cabin has already been "gutted" and the plans call for a separate room for a shower and another for a toilet and sink. There will be three single bedrooms and a smaller "living" area than there was before. The cabin will be insulated and is planned for year round use. That latter part is good news as it gives us more options down the road when we have our new dining hall. So, like many of you, I have spent years in MBC and I am sad to see it change (again) into something else but I am happy that it will be renovated and more importantly....taken care of. We have a new housing strategy coming up which is being designed around several things to include: a) doors not being kicked in, b) holes not magically appearing in the wall, c) no graffiti showing up on walls, d) bathroom facilities that remain clean. Impossible you say? Probably, but we will give it a shot. Hey, if I have to pick between two evils then I am picking the one I have never tried before.

Work continues on the new dining hall but the money is not there. We continue collecting small donations but we haven't reached the mark yet at which we can begin with abandon. As each week passes, it is unlikely we will see a new dining hall now until 2014. That is fine, we can adapt and overcome as we have these past years....after all, the current building does have some character......it is just that we don't want it to become a "character".

The Influence Of One

2012-01-24T10:03:00.000-08:00

It was hard not to expand on yesterday's post as I really wanted the communication to stand by itself, but as I mentioned before, that simple e-mail captures so much. Each season brings close to 3,000 scouts to Camp Parsons. In my position, I seldom interact with any one scout but instead look out onto the parade field before meals and ceremonies and just see a large number of scouts and adults. I often wonder to myself how this organized chaos seems to work so well. Scouts are running here and there; you go to a merit badge class and you are amazed that anything gets done given the attention span of a young scout; you watch them try to row a boat, paddle a canoe and realize they have no idea what the heck they are doing. How does any of that translate to finding an interest? Apparently it does.

This past year, we had a visit from a young man both at camp school as well as camp during staff week. This gentleman is part of a crew that participates in professional rowing races and was part of a team that rowed across the Atlantic some time ago. Where did his passion for rowing come from? From his time as a scout here at Camp Parsons. It was something that he had not done before, rowing on open water and it became a passion for him. I have heard similar stories from individuals who went on our Silver Marmot hikes who have developed a passion for hiking, camping and climbing. When you hear these stories over and over again it begins to sink in that we are doing something good on the Hood Canal as well as countless other scout camps throughout the US. I think it is good for our staff to understand what influence they potentially have on any one of our scouts who come to camp. It could be a guitar song that may get them interested in a musical instrument or taking the time to help a scout develop a skill whether it be rowing, knot tying or doing crafts that might light a fire of interest in that scout for that particular activity. Who knows? One of the best commercials that the BSA ever had (in my opinion) was one that aired in the late 70's. It started off with a well known personality, in this instance it was Bruce Jenner (Decathlon Gold Medal winner) who started it off by saying, "If you start a Boy Scout Troop in your neighborhood you have no guarantee that one of your scouts will grow up to be a Decathlon winner..." and it went on to show Jimmy Stewart who simple says "..an actor", Neil Armstrong..."the first man to walk on the moon" and other notable figures all of whom were either scouts or Eagle Scouts. The last one was Gerald Ford who ended the commercial by saying "....or even the President of the United States....but then again, you never know."

Many notable personalities started off with humble beginnings and were influenced by their upbringing and experiences they encountered, many of which involved a mentor. Take Gerald Ford for instance; he never sought the presidency, he was just a well respected, experienced congressman from Michigan. In a matter of months, he went from a little known name to become the president. Could you imagine being his scoutmaster? We have had several political leaders grow up at Camp Parsons, Brinkley and the former Omache. Some of those individuals who had influence over them continue to do the same for the scouts of today. Again, what we do is important and has a purpose if for nothing else than having the opportunity to instill those values found within the program that we hold so dear into our membership. It has been said many times before, scouting is a game with a purpose.

Everything we do has the potential to have an impact on an individual. This is what we drive into our staff when train them each season; our sole purpose is to serve those scouts who attend camp. This is their only week of camping and our only week to give them every opportunity to sample as much of camp as they can. They will be exposed to the values of scouting by the way we do things but most importantly, they will have fun while doing it. After all, we are a summer camp, not a summer school. If we make our mark on even one scout that attends camp, then we have done our job.

Leaving A Mark.....

2012-01-23T13:14:00.000-08:00

During staff training we consistently emphasize the fact that the sole reason that the staff exist is to serve the scouts. They are our purpose in life, they give Camp Parsons life, they are the reason why Camp exists. Although we deal with merit badge classes or we deal with troops, the individual scout is the focus of our attention. While they are at camp they are exposed to many influences; from camping in tents or cabins, eating in a large dining hall or cooking their own meals and they have an opportunity to learn many new skills. This is the purpose for merit badges; it may introduce them to an activity or skill that may turn into a lifelong passion or desire. So with that being said I was very proud today when I received this e-mail through our camp's website:

Hello,

I wanted to share something with you about your camp. My son attended Camp Parsons 3 years ago. He had never fired a gun in his life. He went on to be in the dime club and beat everyone in that camp session. Well fast forward 3 years. He is one of the top shooters in the country shooting both nationally and internationally. He will find out next month if he qualified for the Junior Olympics in Colorado Springs. He hopes to qualify for the Olympics in 2016 or 2020 to represent the United States of America.

Your camp has provided this opportunity for him to discover a natural talent. I commend your camp Counselor for taking their time to work with our youth.

In a paragraph this e-mail sums up the purpose not only of Camp Parsons but of the Boy Scouts of America. Although character development is the key to the program, all types of experiences feed into this. The scout that is mentioned here was exposed to a skill that has become a major part of his life. The fact that our staff members took the time to work with the scout instead of just dismissing him amongst the hordes of others speaks volumes.

I could go on extolling the benefits of what camp or the program brings, but I don't think I could say it any better than this simple e-mail.

It makes it all worthwhile doesn't it?

It's Just Snow

2012-01-18T11:21:00.000-08:00

Give it a break.........it is "rain" by any other name; sure, cold and annoying.....but still rain. All the social media, all the news media, everybody....snow this, snow that, OMG...SNOW!!!! Look, I know we don't usually see it all the time on the lowlands, but we do see it every other year and whether it is a dusting or 3 feet, everything comes to a grinding halt. However there is nothing we can do about it. Why would you spend millions upon millions of dollars on equipment that you will need for only a few days each year? Suck it up, stay at home unless you have to get out and if you do then take it easy.

A few of us cannot skip work. Even if I couldn't get to work today, they would have sent someone out to get me. The good thing for me though was that the roads were generally empty today. On my way in I saw a few things that brings home the knowledge that there is always one more imbecile in the crowd than you counted on. As I was heading down a major arterial, there was a guy trying to ride his bicycle on the road, in a lane. With all four of my wheels going, I was still moving around a little bit sliding here and there. Nothing too bad, but enough to possibly clip this guy as I went by. More importantly, by the time I got near him, he had already fallen.....twice. He would then try to peddle a little before he put both feet on the ground (still straddling the bike) and tippy-toe the ground to keep balance. Seriously? He might as well have walked given the rate he was going. Of course I also noted a picture in the Seattle Times today of a guy on a bicycle on University Ave. The caption said, "he still keeps going even though he has fallen three times...." I wonder what would happen if he got hit by a car. I know, the driver would be cited and the bike enthusiasts in Seattle would rush to the bicyclist defense saying that he had every right to be on the road. Well, yes he did have the right AND he is also responsible for his actions in the fact that he cannot control his transportation mode as much as the cars cannot. In snow and ice, two wheels are more risky than four. The other thing I noticed were all the "big" trucks zipping about. You know the ones I am talking about, they are usually owned by teenagers or guys in their early 20's.......or guys in their 50's who act like they are teenagers. Yes, they do have four wheel drive...all four of which slide when you take a corner too fast. This one guy came too wide and his left front wheel got stuck on the wrong side of the small median dividing north and south lanes. He went careening down the road until the divider stopped and he was able to regain control of his vehicle. Thankfully, no one was injured and nothing got hit.

So snow brings out the idiots of the world and throws everyone else into a panic. Except at camp where there is now a world class sliding hill on the trail formerly known as the Trading Post to Craft Lodge trail. Not only that, if you can look closely at this picture there is ice forming on the Hood Canal.....brrrrrrrr....can it really be that cold? Regardless, stop complaining and enjoy it while you can....just be prepared.

My "Little" Camp

2012-01-17T15:58:00.000-08:00

Have you ever noticed that some people can be very demeaning yet be oblivious to their own behavior? I think we all have said something that came out far differently than what we meant it to come out as. Things like, "well, that was stupid" or "stop acting incompetent" or "it doesn't matter, you look great in anything..." These are things that make you cringe when you hear them come out of your mouth yet it is too late to stop or reverse the impact. Perhaps even worse is when you hear from a second party who relays to you how upset the individual at the receiving end of your little quip was. These are the times that you wish life had a reverse button so you could go back and either stop or change what you say.

I was at work the other day when a colleague passed me and nonchalantly said, "were you up at your little camp this past weekend?" I don't know if it was the fact that I was not in a good mood or it was the way he said it to me, but the fuse was lit. I turned around and laid into this particular person, asking about what he meant by that statement. I think I caught him off guard because the amount of back peddling he did would have gotten him into the Guinness book of world records. He was just trying to make small talk when he made that little quip. I am sure after we parted ways he made a mental note not to bring up that topic again.

Why did I go off? Well, first of all the camp is not little; 440 acres of prime timber and a mile and a half of waterfront, numerous buildings, 45,000 gallons of fresh water storage, 4 active wells, countless flush toilets and showers, a 550 foot pier and a 400 person dining hall. This multi-million dollar facility is more than just "little" it is an active facility requiring ongoing professional and volunteer maintenance and generates a significant net profit to fund its activities as well as those of the Chief Seattle Council. It is not "little" in the fact that it affects over 3,000 scouts and scouters who come during the 8 week season nor is it "little" in the program that is offered. It is not "little" when looked upon as an active part of the Pacific Northwest history. We may be "little" in some aspects but the camp is huge in regards to how it affects people who spend time there.

Yes, those are some of the reasons why I went off. More importantly though, it was my reaction to the perceived dismissal of a fantastic program in a single statement. Most people outside of scouting don't know what the scouting program offers or the values that it instills in young men. Many look upon the program as a bunch of bratty, pre-teen boys running around in uniforms run by morbidly obese individuals who wear ridiculous uniforms along with a campaign hat who have a nasty habit of allowing pedophiles to infiltrate their ranks. I find it interesting that those people who view the program in that manner consider themselves "open-minded" yet hypocritically stereotype a historical program in that manner. Harsh words? You bet, but I am not going to have the good work that many scoutmasters do as well as our dedicated staff members be denigrated in any way due to the mis-actions of a few. It is amazing the questions I get from people who don't understand the basis of the BSA program yet feel free to have an opinion based on a TV newscast or an op-ed piece in a questionable printed publication.

I can easily denigrate numerous programs I see in my community as being nothing but "fluff" programs that add nothing to the individual and more importantly, nothing to the community as a whole. However I don't because it is obvious that it is important to that (or those) individual(s) or it simply may be just fun. What they believe in or what they do has no bearing on me unless it interferes with my course in life. So yes, I laid into my colleague for his presumptuous, yet minimal statement which really was not much about what he said as opposed to how he said it. There is nothing little about our camp and there is nothing little about the BSA program. I don't think he will make small talk with me anymore.

Snow at camp, at least 1/2 foot but enough to take out the power. Thank goodness for a generator as we can fire that up and get the Traeger out.......nothing like a good steak along with oysters cooking with snow falling all around you.

A Working Party

2012-01-16T11:20:00.000-08:00

This past weekend we had our usual monthly work party at camp and boy, what a party it was. More people showed up than we were expecting.....all (well mostly all ) with construction talent. I had to rearrange my schedule as the dining hall committee had a meeting with the Civil Engineer who is designing the service road into the new dining hall. I can tell you that after that meeting I have heard enough about grades, permits and even being "civil". The meeting went well and we were able to agree on a course of action. Greg Batie who was also in attendance took the afternoon to get a jump on the electrical project for the new Trading Post.

We had a number of staff members show up, in particular Andy Briggs, Andy Hoyle, Chris LaLonde and Derek Hayes along with his father Steve. They all pitched in on the Trading Post helping out not only Greg Batie but Greg Hammond who also attended along with Trent. Gary Smith also attended our meeting and then spent the weekend working on the Trading Post as well as Tom Rogers and Meredith Daniels. Basically, when we say "working" this essentially is having Batie measure something out, drill a hole through what he marked then drag wire through that hole. Simple? Not so fast my friend, it is amazing that to do that job right you need to be part contortionist. In any event, the doors are on, the windows in, plumbing is mostly done and the electrical is just about there as well. Finally we may get this thing done.

We were surprised to have Dennis Hummel and a buddy of his come up on Saturday as well. Dennis worked at CP in the 70's and spent two years as Head Cook. To this day I still believe that he ran the most efficient (and feared) kitchen of all the staffs I have worked on. I worked as his assistant cook for one season and enjoyed myself.....thank goodness the scars have healed. Dennis and his buddy were able to change out the door on the doctor's cabin. That was a project that had been on the list for some time.

Matt Jainga and Chris Myers were up on Saturday as well and along with Ralph Gorg and Bruce Duncan cut down the remnants of a large tree that was hanging precariously over the Mt. Olympus campsite. Not really in a place to do any physical harm to the structures there, but one heck of an attractive nuisance for scouts to try and climb up on. You see, that is Scout Physics Law #12; any inanimate object which has one end on the ground and angled so that the other end is at least (but not less than) 50 feet above the ground exerts an irreversible attraction to scouts.

I know that I have left out someone (Jim Watson, Alan Hutchinson and Sam Eng), but every ones help was appreciated particularly from Ken who was happy with all the work that was done. He was a little worried about the food as he didn't know that these many people were coming, but we had plenty of lasagna left over when everything was done. It was good chatting to the boys in the evening, even if it was freezing up there on the canal.

42 applications have been received; half from returning staff and half from "new" staff (many of whom were CITs last summer). We are off to a good start for 2012.

Talking With Youth

2012-01-12T11:18:00.000-08:00

The title might be a little misleading as my discussion point is not directed at the youth within the Boy Scouting program but instead to the young men (and women) who work for me. Over the past several weeks I have met with some of our staff and had a chance to talk with them either face to face or by phone. Yesterday I had the opportunity to mini-interview one of our former staff members and found myself having a very pleasant discussion that covered everything from mutual acquaintances to actual college course work. This is not surprising as I have found in these past years that I have enjoyed talking with many of my young staff members more than I thought I could.

When I first came on staff, the Camp Director and Program Director were much older than I was. Still, I felt comfortable being able to talk with them at any given time, however I was very careful with what I said. I remember that when either one of them happened to be in my area I would begin to have some "angst", a little nervousness that either I had done something wrong or I was about to do something wrong. When I first became Program Director, most of the staff were not that much younger than I was, probably four or five years in general so my interactions with them were more along the peer line. Since I have been very much associated with the camp through the years I never felt that I moved too far away from being "one of the guys." Unfortunately (or fortunately) this past decade has done nothing more than to remind me how much older I am when compared to my general staff........and it is not getting much better as time goes on.

Most people who know me understand that I do not suffer fools well. Although I am "friendly" I am very "a"-emotional (as opposed to unemotional) when it comes to meeting people, at least to begin with. Part of it is that I am usually distracted by thinking about something else, however the other reasons include the fact that I may not wish to expend the energy to get to know someone I am unlikely to see again. Don't take that the wrong way, I meet people at meetings, dinners, events, etc give a hearty handshake and participate in meaningless banter......that is not being fake, just being social. When it comes to my staff however, I take the time to get to know them, but it is usually at a distance as many will just fade into the mist as time goes on. We have our usual staff that give a year of service which we call "one and done" and we have our second year staff members; all of whom give their best when they worked their particular summer. Usually by the second week of camp I have their names down and by the end of summer I think I have a pretty good "bead" on them. However I seldom engage any of them in any particular discussion. If they return for several years, then I will get to know them better.

Then there are a handful of staff members that return year after year. You see them through high school then through college. You are dragged somewhat into their life as they live at camp for nine weeks and so you hear their stories and see them interact with their peers. These are the staff members that I do get to know and find myself actually having an intelligent discussion with them......even if they are 19. As a matter of fact, I could sit in my cabin with several of my peers who are in their 40's, 50's and (gasp) even "60"s along with these younger staff members and the discussion would be just as lively with them engaged on a topic. From my standpoint I find it refreshing to listen to an intelligent young person who is passionate about a topic talk with an individual who probably shares the same passion "of'" the topic but is jaded by his experiences in life that have made him reassess his views. For people that I would as easily dismiss due to their lack of experience, I find myself engaged in discussions and actually enjoy them. In fact I enjoy them so much that if I happen to be in Seattle or some other town where one of our senior staff would be either working or going to school, I seek out time to have a chat or an adult beverage (if they are an adult) with them.

Despite all of this however, the staff are still young and although I enjoy the intelligent banter, they also have work to do. If they fail in this manner, then it doesn't matter how witty, smart or talented they may be as individuals, they will not be at camp for very long. That is the hard part. Every now and then you will have a very talented young man who just cannot do the work that camp requires him to do. It is not due to the lack of skills, it has to do with the lack of implementation........a fancy word for being lazy. So there is the challenge in dealing with our youth.....although you may be able to discuss some things almost as you would a peer, they are not peers and they have to follow their own course.

I enjoyed talking with my Camp Director and Program Director when I was 15, I learned so much from them which helped me as I moved on in life. I was able to apply many of their experiences to what I went through. Today I find that my discussions with our younger staff helps counter my natural cynicism so although they may benefit from my discussions, I certainly benefit from their energy.

The Art Of Mediocrity

2012-01-11T11:17:00.000-08:00

I came to work the other day and was dealing with a particularly difficult case. It wasn't difficult in a straight technical or knowledge sense, but there were so many mitigating factors that played into how decisions had to be made that it was a constant drain on my mental process to work out this case and make the appropriate decision. Part of the solution however was dependent on a group of professionals that are there every day, one of whom is dealing with this particular individual.....this professional's observations was key in how I would make my decision. On this particular day I was presented with a major decision on which course I should take; I turned to my resource, the professional that is there every day and asked what they thought. The answer, "I don't know, I have been gone for the last several days." That was it......"don't know" was essentially the answer I received. I stared at this person for a brief moment and replied "wrong answer." You see, it is the job of this particular professional who assumes the responsibility of the previous professional to educate themselves on all aspects of what is going on with the individual on whom I have to make a decision. Whether they were there or not, it is their job to know what is going on. However the culture "creep" has always been to divorce oneself from responsibility by falling back on the notion that since they were not here, they are absolved of having to get themselves up to speed. Mediocrity pure and simple and it drives me crazy.

I am sorry to be somewhat vague in the description but I don't want to get bogged down by me explaining to you my profession or put titles on the others I need to work with, it is the point I am trying to get across. If you truly wish to be called a "professional" then there are certain attributes that you must have and mediocrity is not one of them. You don't strive to be moderately good, to be just OK or to be just average. You may wind up like that when compared to your peers, but you don't make that your target. If you don't understand that, then you better get a different job where a "so-so" performance is considered acceptable.

This is one aspect we try to drill into our staff when we train them. The term "I will do my best....." is not just a set of words, it is a set-up to remind you that you will always do your best regardless of what you undertake. Even if your best puts you in dead center of the pack, it doesn't matter.....you are pushing yourself to be as successful as you can. Taking the example above, if the said "professional" that I mentioned was caught off guard, then the only acceptable answer would have been "I don't know, but I will find out and get right back to you immediately." Sure, I would have expected more, but at least the person I was talking to understood that they were not up to the speed they were supposed to be and that recognition is 3/4 of the battle.

Even I have to be careful at camp that I don't fall into the feeling "oh, this will work if we just do it that way." I remember a saying, though I cannot remember who said it, which I fear may apply to me. Men of age object too much, consult too long, adventure too little, repent too soon and seldom drive to greatness but content themselves with a mediocrity of success. OUCH! I have found myself objecting too much and adventuring too little, though I doubt I repent to soon. Do I hold back opportunities for our staff and program to be great? Hard to say, but I know what I expect out of them and they would probably be shocked to hear me say that they can do it better now than I could when I was their age.

Being mediocre is one thing, some people are doomed to be that way and are blissfully unaware that they are. People who accept mediocrity on the other hand really have no place at Camp Parsons. When I used to teach more than I do now and someone who I considered mediocre and who knew it came and asked me for a recommendation for a job or further education I would answer (and still do) by saying, "My recommendation? Sure. Here is how it will begin, 'Of all the ________who have worked for me, such and such is certainly one of them. He(she) is consistently and outstandingly average; on a ranking from 0-10 he(she) is a solid 5'.....is that what you want?" After the individual is done staring at me, they usually walk away and seldom ask me for something again.

There is no art of mediocrity, but there are a lot of people out there who are trying to make it one.

Gadgets

2012-01-10T12:41:00.000-08:00

First, let me say congratulations to Alabama on their "national" title, or perhaps should I say SEC Title game redux. As predicted, it was a boring game (at least for me) that the media tried to make something of this morning....."A decisive victory..." A bunch of field goals and one touchdown......bleh. The proof is in the numbers, this was the least watched BCS championship game ever which just goes to show how meaningless this mathematical model of ranking is. Time to tighten the belt, lose some bowl games and make the remaining ones worth watching instead of just overwhelming us with more. OK, enough, let's move on.

I was taking the light rail out to SeaTac airport some time ago (don't roll your eyes, I take public transportation every now and then) and was doing some work on my smart phone when I looked up and took in my surroundings. There were about 20 other people in my particular car section and each one of them had their faces buried into their smart phone or i-pad as well. It didn't seem that long ago that if I took a bus or a train, I would spend most of my time trying not to look at other people and focus on the passing scenery, even if the scenery was nothing but dilapidated houses. Today, we have so many electronics that consume our time and interest. From i-pods, to i-pads and i-phones we are overwhelmed with digital distractions. When I travel, it is almost rare for me to see anyone read a book in print. Usually they are reading from a kindle, i-pad or a lap top. Now don't get me wrong, I think some of these new innovations are great. Since getting my own i-phone I have found that I no longer need to carry my lap top with me when I go on short trips, I can do just about everything from my phone. The amount of information that I can get through numerous applications is fantastic. Everything from finding a good place to eat, movie times, sports schedules, the betting line......everything can be found through my "smart" phone. I find myself easily distracted for almost an hour at a time. Sometimes when I look at it or use it to text someone, some of my friends say, "oh here we go again, I guess that phone is better company than me...." There is some truth to that as I find myself in the same position when I am talking to someone who returns the conversation while looking and typing on their phone. You feel like saying.."hey, up here." Despite the benefits of a smart phone, too much of anything is never good. I know some people that have so many applications that there is no way they could use all of them if they spent a year doing it.

This gadgetry is slowly making its way into camp life. For years we have had staff members first bring TVs, then VCRs, then CDs, then computers and lap tops, and now we have these phones. Years ago we began restricting what could be brought up as we found certain things to be distracting. When video games became the rage decades ago, we would find many of our staff members missing only to be found holed up in their cabins playing a game with others. We also began noticing more "theft" which was actually people "borrowing" someones elses game for awhile. Now we have a surge of these smart phones. We have restricted this as well by allowing our staff to have them, but the phones never leave the room during the week of camp. If a staff member wanted to use his phone, he would have to do it on his own time. I have no doubt that staff member have snuck them out and used them clandestinely but the good news is that I don't see them walking around with their heads buried in their phones. What I am seeing is that more and more scouts are walking around with their noses buried into their phones.

Every year scoutmasters have asked us to extend our wireless service to involve both sides of camp and points in between. We have been resistant to this for many reasons but the main reason for us not to do this is that we are not going to encourage a behavior that distracts one from their purpose at camp. For a scoutmaster that is tending to his troop and making sure that they are doing what they are supposed to be doing......not working on their computer or phone. If the scoutmaster needs to check e-mail or do a little work from camp, then they can come to the office for a short period of time and do that there.....keep it out of the campsites, that is where scouting is happening.

There is a time and place for everything and scout camp is not the time or place for gadgets...particularly for scouts having gadgets. If I were a scoutmaster once again, I would ban scouts from having cell phones with them during outings (they will never get lost, broke or "stolen") and make sure all the parents had my cell phone number if they needed to get a hold of their child. If I can get the staff to live without carrying a phone around with them, you should be able to control a young scout in a similar manner. If you can't, don't worry....some day there will be an app for that.

A Championship That Doesn't Matter?

2012-01-09T11:55:00.000-08:00

Like a good portion of America, I will be watching the BCS championship tonight though I am not sure why. We have seen Alabama and Louisana State University play already and that was a low scoring boring game. I felt the same way last year when UW played Nebraska in the Holiday bowl, but that wasn't for the national title......and we won. I guess if I had any inkling of support for any one of those two teams playing tonight it might make it that more interesting. However, I am no fan of the SEC, so I am already starting with a deficit. I will be drawn to watch it simply because it is the national title game and if it is exciting, then great; if it was like last time, I won't make it through the second quarter.

Now take that in contrast to a scout that comes to Camp Parsons year after year. Many scoutmasters have told me "we like to take the boys to a rotation of four camps so that they get a sampling of what is out there and don't get bored." There is truth to that, then again I think it is more for the adults than it is for the scouts (my personal opinion). Despite that opinion however, there is some validity to this. A scout can go to a camp and think that it is "awesome". Then they go to another camp and think that is "awesome". If left to their own devices, they probably would stay at the first place and never leave as they have nothing to compare it to. I know that scouts love to come to Camp Parsons, you see it in their faces and hear it in their voices. I think the majority of adults who bring their troops back to our camp do so partly for that reason and partly for the fact that they know the program we run and can count on it to give their scouts a great week of camp. When you go to another camp, you are going for the experience and the location, the leadership at those camps are the "wild card" that can make or break that troop's experience. Sure the scouts will have a good time, but the scoutmaster may be miserable having to deal with the staff leadership.

We have offered a consistent program as well as consistent leadership throughout the years, yet for the life of me I cannot tell that one year is the same as others. Oh sure, I have a hard time keeping the staff straight but there are so many that return and cross over from season to season I forget the specific years when they worked. The program however has never been the "same". The structure might be the same, the schedule might be the same, but what is brought to the stage is always.....always different. It could be a staff personality, a special skit(s), a song, a play a combination of many things.....but at the end of the day, no one season is the same as the other. Heck, each week is different from the others. Every time I think that I have an idea how things are going to go, it is different. This is not in a bad way, just a way that was not what I thought it was going to be. Last year for example, we ended our staff training week with a staff that seemed to have the experience and a presence of a staff that had worked together for an entire summer already......even though the majority were first year staff members.

They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and hoping to get a different result. I believe it is the talent, brilliance and energy of our staff that result in a different experience week after week and summer after summer even though we work from the same platform. Some people would say that this is the result of our experience. Well it is true, experience is a wonderful thing......it enables you to recognize a mistake when you make it again.

I don't care about the national title tonight, I do care about a good game. I hope that some folks don't care about having to feel that they need to move around to different camps, I just hope they care about the program it offers their scouts. Of course, the two can be the same.....then again, that is always a gamble.

Traveling The World

2012-01-08T12:53:00.000-08:00

One of the unique characteristics of Camp Parsons are the visitors we have had at camp through the years. From Lord Baden-Powell, the founder of scouting through numerous noted citizens that make up the history of the Pacific Northwest. Governors, Senators, academic leaders, business leaders and many more have spent some time on Jackson Cove these past 93 seasons. We are a chapter in L. Ron Hubbard's autobiography as he spent a couple of summers at Camp Parsons, which raises an eyebrow or two when we mention that at during the history tours. Even Robert Gates, the former Secretary of Defense visited us in the late 90's. I had mentioned several months ago that we had hosted the Condit Campout at Camp Parsons and we had a special guest with us at that time, Alvin Townley. Alvin is an author who has written Legacy of Honor as well as The Spirit of Adventure and Fly Navy. Alvin was a successful business man in Atlanta, Georgia working for Arthur Anderson when he took time off and went around the US interviewing notable public figures who were Eagle Scouts and asking them how scouting affected their lives. Since that time he has left his job for full time writing, speaking and traveling. He has been to Seattle on several occasions, the one I remember was when he spoke at the annual Eagle Scout recognition dinner, but he was invited back to participate in the Condit Campout and was assigned to my patrol this past fall. The pictures to your left show our motley crew of myself, Bryan Zemp, Brad Tilden (President of Alaska Airlines) and Alvin. The picture below that is one of the tasks we had to complete.....this was when we were in first place in the morning. If you go back to the October blogs, you can read about our disappointing performance, but we had a great time competing together.

I received a note from Alvin the other day telling me about his trip to the Sudan and his experiences there as well as in Kenya where he visited Lord Baden-Powell's grave site. I am not sure where he is off to next, but I am sure it will be interesting.

I must admit that I am somewhat jealous of his position. Granted, it was not an easy choice to make but it was something he wanted to do and he took a heck of a risk doing it. He left a very successful job, traveled the US on his own dime and probably had to fight tooth and nail to get the interviews with the folks that he did (take a look at the book and you will see who I am talking about) for something that may never have been successful financially (although I am sure it would have been personally for him). He told me in the past that it was something he felt compelled to do and now, he has become good at telling the story. Although I doubt I could ever give up my profession, I too have a desire to share my experiences and observations of scouting, gleamed mainly from years of summer camping, to others. Unfortunately I do not share Alvin's ability to focus on completing this particular task as it has always been second to my work or my first line interests, whether it be with camp, friends or sporting events. Something needs to be sacrificed for me to put my energies into finishing a book that I begun two decades ago with nothing more than just ruminations. Well, they still are ruminations......and I must admit, writing this blog certainly has me focused on key elements of my thoughts.

Perhaps I need to take a page from Alvin's biography (not yet written) and focus on what is important to me instead of just living each day as it comes. Then again, I worry too much about what the future might hold and whether I am prepared to meet it. I guess if you worry too much you die.....of course, even if you don't worry you die anyway......so why worry? Maybe I will write that book.

Fog

2012-01-06T11:33:00.000-08:00

Yes, I know.....a bit of a strange topic. However I was driving home last evening and once again found myself commenting on how thick the fog was (where I was at). I am not sure if anyone else has noticed, but on the western side of the Pacific Northwest, there have been a number of thick, foggy days. Perhaps that is because the air has been colder than usual and we haven't had a lot of rain, however the ground is still moist. I have noticed this same thing up and down the I-5 corridor as well as on the Olympic Peninsula. We were at Forks in November staying with some of Ken's relatives and for two nights we had really thick fog. I mentioned it out of passing (forgetting where I was) only to be told, "yeah, yeah.....fog.....vampires. We hear it all the time, blah, blah....." I guess that is true living in the make believe land of Twilight.

In early December we had a significant amount of fog at camp. I have told you before how different camp looks (and feels) when it is snowing or even when it is under siege by a major winter storm. Having the camp engulfed in fog is no different. However on this particular occasion the fog really was thick. How thick? Well, if you stood at the shore end of the pier, you could see the glow of the pier light but you really could not make out its shape. It was just an orb of orange (say that three times fast) in the distance. It wasn't until I was half way down the pier that I could make out the light in more detail. The end of the pier was not visible until you were almost 50 feet away from it. As I walked (and drove) around camp during that evening the same thing played out everywhere. I could be walking up the parade field without anything but a wall of "off" white in front of me, then all of a sudden a large structure would unveil itself in front of me......a very forbidding dining hall. It was one of those nights I didn't think I should be sleeping in there. Through the distance you could hear some wildlife move around but I could not make out exactly what it was or even where it was. It was then I began thinking that I really wasn't aware of anything that was around me so I promptly went back to my cabin. When you are in camp all by yourself, it is interesting how many "tricks" your ears (and imagination) will play on you in that setting.

This, of course, is in stark contrast to the summer when rarely there is a truly dark night, the weather is generally warm and you just can't get rid of the scouts from sight or ear shot. Much like my mini-eulogy to Jim......to every season there is a purpose. Not too sure what the purpose of the fog is, but there you go.

We are beginning to receive staff applications in bulk. I am happy to report that the vast majority are returning staff members. February will soon be upon us, I hope our boys get them in soon.

Selling Out

2012-01-05T13:03:00.000-08:00

There is something frustrating about having things you like to do or things that you believe in, change for the sake of obtaining something better at the expense of losing the ethos of what that "thing" was. I have raged constantly about the "selling out" of the scouting program by professional scouts, adult leaders and yes, those of us at Camp Parsons. The main example I will make of myself is that for the sake of ease, when we have a troop cook out during the week, we supply it as a troop and not as a patrol. If we were true to the scouting program we would have the troops give us their patrol lists and then package the food for each patrol (with enough for the adult "guests") and send it out in that manner OR have the patrols come and pick it up. That is the scout method way, but for ease and efficiency, we bulk it together. We make excuses for it by saying that it is a temporary stop-gap until we have the new dining hall, then we can go back to the patrol distribution as we have done in the past. Unfortunately, our stop-gap has been going on for 16 years. So perhaps the only thing I can say is that we are consistent.

Now, it may not have anything to do with scouting, but one of my other outlets is college football. To me, it is a great game to watch particularly when you have so many talented players giving it their "all" unlike a similar number of professional players that just phone it in. College football was more than just a game, it was an event for students, alumni and supporters alike. A chance to take a day and breathe it all in. However, commercialism has slowly crept in bringing along with it greed. We began having night games and weekday games, not for the love of the sport, but a chance for television companies to broadcast to an audience who is just as likely to sit on the couch than to go to the game. Along with that came increased revenue for the school, a chance to be on the national stage and as such, a chance to recruit. These are all favorable outcomes of this slow "creep". Now I know that I am old fashioned in the belief that athletics offering student athletes a chance for an education of which, the education came first. That belief faded when you saw areas of studies such as "Sports Media" or "General Education" popping up as majors. Oh sure, they will toss in that odd athlete who is truly brilliant in the classroom as he (she) is on the field. They are the exception and not the rule.

We finally received the PAC-12 schedule for next year so that we could plan our work parties and other events around the home schedule for the UW. As a result of a conference agreement, every team must play three games on a day other than Saturday. For the UW that means hosting Stanford on a Thursday evening, playing at California on a Friday and.......get this......playing WSU in the Apple Cup on Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, in Pullman..........PULLMAN. I think my WSU staff members and alumni would agree, that is no favor to WSU or to the UW and our respective fans. Where's the brain trust that came up with that one? Simply put, it was the contract that the conference made with the media. To heck with the fact that the heart of the game is in the people who are in the stands......it is more important to broadcast to the people who have no intention on attending the game. For those of us who have to work....we will soon be in that crowd.

For some of you this is not a big deal and would argue that if you are going to continue to recruit on a national basis as well as bring revenue to the conference this has to happen. Poppycock I say! The points of the argument are correct if we surrendered to that common belief. Instead, if we held true to the student athlete mantra, all games would be played at the same time and fans as well as the media would have to chose whom to watch. Life is tough, make choices and live with what you choose. If 6 PAC-12 teams played at 12:30 and 6 played at 4 PM on a Saturday, well......make a choice. Sure, you could be like Notre Dame where you could potentially have a losing season for 8 years in a row, but every game is guaranteed to be broadcast.....then again, they are and they are not really winning are they?

It is a moot point as it is no longer is an argument, it is a fact and that is the way collegiate sports will go. I just hope other things like the BSA will not falter for the sake of money or hopeful outcomes that are not based on fact. The methods are the methods and the program is the program. Then again, maybe we can take the lead from the NCAA and begin camp on a Thursday. I wonder how many adults would want to take time off of work to drive to the Hood Canal for that?

It is a shame that there isn't a little common sense when looking at this. Someone who could think logically would provide a nice contrast to the real world.

Back To The Woods

2012-01-04T15:46:00.000-08:00

In recent years I thought we had lost one of the best opportunities for older scouts.....the Silver Marmot Treks. Since beginning the kayaking treks, more troops have been signing up for that instead of going hiking. I can understand why; there is the fact that there are no limits on who we take onto the canal (except for the number of kayaks that we have) and, well, you can sit and paddle. Don't get me wrong, it is a great experience wandering around the Hood Canal, but not really a "High Adventure" type of thing when you stay at State Parks or on private land. When it does become High Adventure due to weather we seldom let the boats go out....trust me, we have tried that and have been burned every time. First they scatter, then they flip, then we have a hard time getting them all back together. The hiking program is different in the sense that even though you are on well traveled trails, you get into areas which are days away from the trail head. Not only that, there are opportunities that pop up for cross country hiking in some of the best untouched wildernesses in the lower United States.

That may be changing as we have interest from several troops to go for a week of hiking and from other troops who want to do a few days hiking and a few days kayaking. This is great! It has been difficult to push for expansion of our hiking program as it is not cost effective to bring on folks who will only take out one or two hikes in an entire season. If this works out, we can expand our program and the rotation of staff that participate in this program.

In my experience, the hiking program has been one of the great adventures for older scouts, and when I say older, I mean 15 years and up. More importantly, the old program was designed for individuals, not scout troops. Why? Part of the reason is that with scout troops there already is a hierarchy amongst the scouts and adults; when they come individually, they start from scratch and make new friends. Each one is giving a position of responsibility that rotates on a daily basis. They choose where they are going to hike, who was carrying what, when to start, etc. Our staff tagged along as mentors instead of hike leaders. Of course, if the need came up, they would assume the leadership position and would never let our scouts get into a situation that they could not handle. This program lost some steam many years ago when all High Adventure was consolidated into one program based at another camp and when it came back, we had lost our drive of returning scouts who wanted to go. This was compounded by listening to adult leaders say, "well, our troop does a 50 miler every year, there is no sense in having them go into this program." I forgot there was a rule that a scout could only do one long term hike per annum.......wait.....there is no such rule. Despite my mashinations on trying to change this mind set, I cannot. So the next best thing is having troops come with a select group of scouts to go hiking. I'll take it.

There are few things that keep young people in the scouting program and one of them is hiking and camping on a level a little higher than what the standard scout troop can do. More importantly, the Olympic Forest and Mountains are one of the best places to hike. Although I haven't hiked my favored land in years, I can remember every foot step I took on each trail. It could have been windy, rainy, and even snowy when I was hiking.....but I couldn't think of a better place to be at the time.

The 94th Year

2012-01-03T13:01:00.000-08:00

It was a windless, cold day when I was able to steal up to the Hood Canal to welcome in the New Year. In the years past this was one of my more favorite activities but between work and other events I haven't been able to do this much. Outside of a few folks visiting, it was a fairly uneventful yet very enjoyable day. It is nice when you don't have to work on a schedule and the meals are planned whenever you decide to fire up the grill or crack open a box of something. Perhaps the best part of the New Year event is that it really is a "non" event when you are at camp. That evening was no different. The pier was covered in sea ice (as it was that cold) but it was very calm. There was a slight cloud cover but what that did was basically reflect the lights from a distant Seattle, Bremerton and cities beyond. When the New Year came, all you could see was reflections of all the fireworks being ignited and the distant rumble of noise that finally would make its way down the canal. Of course, there was the sound of a .22 caliber hand gun going off in the cove which had everyone ducking their head like we were taking fire......but that sound quickly drifted away.....

So now we enter our 94th season of camping on the Hood Canal. What we know currently is that we are full and are taking reservations for 2013 currently. We know that we have troops coming from Alabama, Texas and points in between. What we know is that we will have a great, enthusiastic staff once again and soon the camp will be full of excited young scouts enjoying their time at scout camp. What we don't know yet is what staff are going to fit into certain slots. The usual "dance" begins as we start looking at our organizational chart and decide who is best to fit into what position, at least for the upcoming season. I have no doubt things will work out, but in the meantime I will have to put up with lobbying efforts and bartering for some staff to take certain jobs. Although all jobs are important in my mind, that is not the mind set of most of the staff.

Not knowing about staff positions yet is one thing; another concern is not knowing about things that we have little control over. How is the weather going to turn out? Weather can facilitate or ruin a camp event, particularly when it comes to our outdoor buffet and of course our campfires. Is it going to be a warm summer, or is the weather service right in its prediction that we will have another summer like last years? One of our favorite out-of-camp eateries, the Timberhouse is now closed without much hope of it opening soon. The other options in the community are a possibility, but not good ones for us anymore. What "issues" are going to pop up this summer whether it involves the staff, scouts or the adults? These are things of which we really have no control over but will deal with as we have through the countless past seasons. It can be somewhat exciting to deal with the unknown.

One thing is certain though, as we come to each new year we slowly make our way up the list of "oldest Boy Scout camps" in the United States. As each year comes, it seems that some other camp in some other council closes due to a lack of funds or attendance. However that seems to be offset by the fact that those councils have found a way to keep them opened and running mainly due to the support of their local communities. That actually is a good thing as those facilities are obviously important to that community. As far as we are concerned, we are looking at a busy future as we continue to expand some of our services and hopefully expand our attendance, particularly with our new dining hall.

For an old lady, camp is looking pretty good at 94.

I Went To A Football Game And A Ping Pong Tournament Broke Out

2011-12-30T08:11:00.000-08:00

I love college football, but thank goodness the Husky season is over. I, like most of my friends did not have high hopes of the Dawgs winning against the 12th ranked Baylor Bears with their Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin......oh yes, the third. I didn't know there were two other Griffin's out there playing. He is a great quarterback, but "the third" has to mentioned EVERY time his name is? Even the announcers were stumbling all over that. However, I digress.

The Huskies lost, but I think I am OK with that. Technically, it was a horrible game....back and forth, back and forth, they score, we score, they score, we score.......... I was talking with Adam Desautels during the game and he hit it dead on; the winner of this game is the one in which their defense doesn't make a mistake. That team was Baylor, shutting down the Husky drive on 4th and 8 with 6 minutes left in the 4th Quarter. Then they scored, then we had a chance again....only to fumble. To be honest, this wasn't who had the best team, this was who had the worst defense and I guess we know the answer to that now. It wasn't all bad, there was an interception and special teams put in a good show. Keith Price probably played the best game of his season and Chris Polk......well let's just hope he wants one more year (but I doubt it). I was going to turn the game off in the first quarter (and actually started watching the UW/OSU basketball game) but the second quarter got me back. I must admit, I did enjoy the game until those last six minutes.....but too much scoring folks, that is not a good thing for either team. I am not sure how Baylor is number 12 with their defense.

I have no idea how to tie this to Camp Parsons only that I think our boys could tackle better.

Too Much?

2011-12-29T10:35:00.000-08:00

As I have mentioned many, many times before......although my blog centers around life on the shores of Jackson Cove, it is still my blog. As a result, it has a tendency to reflect my mood which really isn't in the best of places currently. That being said, let me expand on a previous topic that may answer the surly responses I have received so far.

Camp Parsons is blessed to have a multi-talented staff. It is the main reason why we receive good reviews and have become somewhat of a destination camp for troops outside of the Chief Seattle Council. It is my belief that although the location of the camp is a draw in itself, it is secondary to the allure of the applied program by the staff. When we orient new staff, one of the key points that we make is that staff is only as strong as our weakest link. Everyone plays a vital role in the delivery of the program whether you are the potwasher or the aquatics director; scoutcraft crew member or camp director; every job is important, though not every one carries the same skill or responsibility. Outside of the skills of being a good scout, every staff member brings some little uniqueness to the table. Some are good story tellers, some are good singers, some are good actors and some can swing a hammer. Few however, can do it all nor are they expected to. Thirty years ago I was ready to fire a young staff member because he was horrible at his job. No matter what I did or his fellow staff members did to help made a difference. He was so bad that I had to remove him from his job and place him in a program area for at least a week until I was able to hire someone. However during that week.....he began to shine, not only did he shine but he became one of the best staff members of that year and for the following four years that he worked. It dawned on me after that week of change that he was not suited or even had the talents for his previous job. It wasn't that he was a bad guy, he just couldn't do that previous job and when placed where his talents lay, he blossomed. Some of our staff can build things but really do not want to be in front of crowds singing or doing skits. Others are talented on stage but couldn't identify a hammer, saw or crowbar if it were in front of them. All of them bring something to the table and all of them are important. I have always been proud of our staff and have always done my best to support them in their "post-camp" endeavors.

HOWEVER

Despite the fact that I am proud of my staff, they are, for the most part, teenagers. If you can recall Scout Law Physics rule #28; "The IQ of any one staff member is inversely proportional to the number of staff members in the same vicinity." We are talking "group think" here folks, a strange twist on the Lord of the Flies. When left alone to their own devices we quickly find how the saying "idle hands are the devil's workshop" came to be. We go out of our way to make sure our staff are comfortable for their nine week stay at Camp Parsons. Comfortable, heated facilities with electricity. Hot showers, flush toilets and washers/dryers are all readily available. So what happens? Doors kicked in, not only breaking the door but the frame as well; using a roll of toilet paper to "get the job done" and then letting the toilet overflow when you flush; punching holes into the dry wall; bringing food back from the dining hall (particularly milk) then leaving it out in the open in their cabins, after which they complain about mice and the nasty smell. I could go on and on but you get the picture. When I was a teenager, I made some of the same mistakes. I would leave clothes hanging around, garbage bins overflowing but at least at the end of each week my roommates and I would clean it up. How can guys who go to Harvard, MIT, West Point, Tulane, UW, etc live like they are incoherent homeless people that suffer from mental disease? Refer to physics rule #28. It is not only Camp Parsons; Dan Gelis related a similar story from Camp Pigott where staff members were throwing knives into the dry wall of their cabin as a competition. Seriously, if you had friends over to your house and they did that....what would your parents do? Answer that one then substitute Ken and I in the "parents" role.

We have a limited amount of time and money to support a very active program. We need money to keep our limping freezer compressor working so we can store food for the summer, we need to repair boats that live on salt water, we need program equipment, we need to pay our staff a better salary......our resources cannot go into repairing something that never...NEVER should be broken. I loved being in MBC for several years as a young staff member. I also remember that it was an honor and a privilege to live in that cabin and although it got a little messy, we took care of it. If something broke because of our stupidity, we fixed it. When the Program Director broke down our door in the late seventies....we were the ones to fix it. Not so over the last decade or so......and I apologize to those who have tried hard to take care of that cabin during that time....unfortunately you were outgunned.

So yes, it was a negative blog yesterday.....a reflection of my mood. Nonetheless, camp exists for the scouts only. We are tired of having our energies directed at taking care of fixing the benefits that are there for the staff, particularly when they do not take ownership of their own camp. That said....I have faith that our staff can improve, after all they are some of the best scouts in the nation.

Mid-Holiday Ruminations

2011-12-28T23:58:00.000-08:00

"Driest December in recorded history"......."Freezing fog but no precipitation"......"Is this the beginning of a long drought?"...... Yes, you heard this on the radio; you heard this on every channel (ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, etc). All of this told to you as if the end was near........no rain in December....the driest month ever...we are doomed. There is no way any media station could ever (nor would they ever) sponsor a scout troop because their lack of trustworthiness is evident when comes to making up a story. Seriously.....it had been a dry December until now....currently, 1" of rain is forecasted in the next 24 hours. This is on top of what we have had prior to this day and what we will get in the days after the next 24 hours. The way things are going this may turn out to be one of the wettest on record. I guess media=hyperbole.

So a few people commented on my last post on New Years pessimism. Sure, it may have been a little bit of a rant, but it was based purely on observations. Heck, if I wrote about things that I have seen over the years I could write a book (hmmmm). Yes, I know I can be a little harsh......maybe it is just my underlying cynicism......then again, maybe it is the fact that I haven't had more than a 48 hour period of time off since December 12th. I shouldn't complain.....it is important that my colleagues be able to take Thanksgiving, Christmas (and the two weeks around Christmas), Spring Break (and when you work, you will find that your colleagues who have numerous children actually have spring break from February 1st through May 30th), Memorial and Labor day weekends. No problem.....just don't complain when I take a week to teach National Camp School and then take a second week to train the Camp Parsons staff.....wow.....a two week "vacation". So yes, I might get a little cynical, particularly when I have to deal with the aforementioned annoyances during my brief time off.

This week has been so busy that we have not been able to plan the CP holiday gathering. Unfortunately, this event has been on the decline for many years. A long, long time ago (I can still remember.......) we used to have CP staff gatherings, some of which were epic. I remember when we used to rent out a buffet restaurant in Lake City and put on skits through the night (yes cheesy, but it was fun). In the last two decades there have been some memorable events. One was at a place (that does not exist anymore) near Lake Union that was a large "game room". You came in, went through a buffet and sat as a group. The employees then would take you to a special room and you would play Jeopardy just like you would on television. It just wasn't a game, they had the electronics to support it.....it really was like you were playing the real game. Another epic Christmas gathering was leasing an Argosy cruise ship for a tour of the Puget Sound while dining on pizza and having a "white elephant" exchange. As the years went on (and funds dried up a little) we went to pizza and bowling. Alas, we found that some of our younger staff members would tell their parents they were going to a "scout" event, be dropped off and then promptly leave to do their own thing. It became apparent to us that as we cannot assure that everyone stays together (like a scout troop would) it wasn't worth the time or energy (or money) to support something that only a fraction of the staff enjoyed. The final evolution of the CP gathering was mainly those over 21 and became more of an alumni event which was very enjoyable, but time and schedules have become more of an issue, much like mine this year. Some time in the future, we will resurrect the old Christmas party for the entire staff....but it will be heavily chaperoned.....just like any troop would.

Although we are coming to the end of the calendar year, this does not change the fact that we have many projects underway at camp. We work on the "camp" calendar. The first of our "year" begins the day the staff arrive. We still need to finish the Trading Post (which is getting close) as well as a few other projects. Once again, if you haven't heard......MBC has been saved from my lighter. Ken was right.....there is no way we would get a permit to rebuild on that site, so he did the next best thing......it is now gutted...no longer the cabin that many of you remember. Yes....many of the walls are gone....even my name has been ripped (with my consent) from the wall. The plan is to put three adult sized rooms in that space and have a separate shower room and bathroom. It is a new era folks. The younger staff can no longer be trusted with a beachfront property so they will be relegated back to common housing and MBC will be rebuilt to house Visiting Commissioners. Why not...for years I have had to hear from the VCs about noise in MBL where they had to live, so why not take the guys in MBC and move them to MBL and the VCs to MBC. That way the idiots can be up all night and the elderly can sleep. To me that is a win/win.......don't you think?

Then again, let's just say that if the MBC alumni got together and collectively raised close to $1 million for the dining hall....then I would be OK to keep it the same way, i.e: the MBC you know and love. I don't know.....but I could be persuaded.

C'mon.....you can feel the cynicism can't you? It is just like the bad part of a physical examination.....

New Years Pessimism

2011-12-26T11:54:00.000-08:00

Well I hope all of you had a good Christmas. It seems like the season starts so soon (even before Thanksgiving) but goes very quickly. However we are still in the midst of the holidays and the New Year looms ahead. I have hopes for the next year; that we are able to raise the funds to begin construction of the dining hall this fall, that we have another great summer season of camping.....you know, upbeat things like that. Unfortunately the pessimistic side has gotten to me first, probably due to some of my observations over these past few days. Although I have been working most of the holiday season I have had the opportunity to escape here and there to visit some folks and through my rapid travels over the weekend I encountered annoying things that I hope disappear in the New Year (but won't). So what were these annoyances?

People who are thirty-something wearing a baseball cap askew, with a flat bill that still contains the "official" MLB sticker.......folks, you are not a teenager, you are not different and you are definitely not an individual...grow up.

People who believe that because they take the bar stool next you gives them license to tell you all about how their day is going, what the kids are doing and want to know everything about your life when it is obvious that you are there just to watch a football game on TV.

People who think that they are the only people in the world and therefore completely oblivious to everything else around them who meander in front of you and will not let you pass them. This goes for those self absorbed idiots who have to blow a stop sign just to get in front of you so they can drive 20 MPH less than the speed limit.

People who are self appointed police officers who will make sure that we all drive a little below the speed limit by driving next to another slow vehicle and making sure no one can pass.

TSA...........I will apologize in advance to anyone who reads this and works for the TSA or has a relative who works for the TSA. What a bloated, bureaucratic agency full of self important individuals who do nothing that adds to the safety of air travel other than to slow you down and make you realize that the government should never be in the business of customer service. Metal detectors? Fine. Wanding you? Fine. Electronic "sniffers" for explosives? Fine. Rules that change from airport to airport....NOT fine particularly when you are arrogant about it. Belts on here but not there, shoes on the conveyor belt here but not there......each time you are corrected in a manner like you are a petulant little child. Body scanners? I don't care about the radiation (because folks, you are exposed to more just walking around Seattle) but since you have to take everything out of your pockets, shoes off, belt off.....what is the point?

Newlyweds or new couples that can't keep their hands off of each other in public....particularly when you are waiting in line behind them.

Fat guys who wear those skinny jeans who keep dropping things thereby having to bend over and pick them up......OMG!!!!

Deciding to visit a well known bar in Seattle to only find that they require reservations for you to sit at the bar......not tables....just the bar.

These things and much more were encountered over a 48 hour period.....it certainly will not be a "happy" new year to encounter these behaviors in the future. In any event, I am sure I will be more upbeat as we head towards the end of the week and the year. After all, a scout is cheerful.

X-Mas

2011-12-24T18:44:00.001-08:00

T'was the night before Christmas and all through the camp not a creature was stirring....not even a scout. The stockings were hung in Dose with care in the hope that Ken would soon be there (I could go on....but why?)

Merry Christmas 2011

2011-12-23T09:28:00.000-08:00

From the shores of Jackson Cove we wish all of you a Merry Christmas. I know that I am a few days early, but I am unlikely to get enough time to update the blog in the next few days so we wanted to wish all of you Happy Holidays. Camp is closed, the gates are locked and camp will enjoy a quiet and probably wet Christmas. It was interesting that we received a request for part of a scout troop to come out and camp this weekend. I don't think we ever have had that request before, however it does have some appeal.........well at least "some." Of course the request was denied but I think they are going to go somewhere else to camp.

As we look towards the end of 2011 we are preparing ourselves for the 2012 season. Applications have gone out and we have had a few come back. We are getting interest from scouts across the US and Mexico, of all places. 2012 will bring us some challenges, the main one of course is whether we get the funds that will give us the green light for construction this next winter on the dining hall. By the end of January we should know whether we are looking at a 2013 or 2014 opening. Wouldn't it be a great Christmas present for camp if we found a new dining hall underneath the tree? C'mon Santa!

Merry Christmas folks....enjoy your weekend.

Money From Burgers

2011-12-20T17:43:00.000-08:00

If you haven't heard the news yet, Fat Smitty's has decided to take down all the money on their ceiling and donate it to our dining hall fund. We received news about this several weeks ago through the District Executive of that area but apparently now the money is on its way. For those of you without knowledge of Fat Smitty's, it is a small diner located near Discovery Bay on Hwy 101 where Route 20 takes off to Port Townsend. Their signature meal is the Fat Smitty Burger which is a colossal burger that for some require a knife and fork to eat (if you are a wimp). It is the destination of staff members (particularly those under 21) each weekend after the scouts have left and has been for decades. This is the reason why that cafe is donating the cash; they believe in the Boy Scouts and they appreciate the business we have given them through the years. That plus the fact that the amount of "paper" on the ceiling is probably becoming a fire hazard.

Now we broke the news yesterday on several social media sites and the response has been pretty positive. Why not! What is so controversial about someone donating us money? However, there were several nay sayers out there. "That can't be true", "They aren't going to do that" and so on. Really? Why on earth would we make this story up? There are far better stories than this if I want to tell a yarn...... Seriously, if you question this please call Ken and tell him to stop lying. Of course, I would like to be there to hear any of you say that to Ken.

I for one had planned to keep this quiet until we had the money in our hands, but it has been confirmed. How much? Not too sure about that yet until we receive it but our guess is somewhere around $2,000-$3,000. Maybe we should take bets to see who gets closest to the actual amount.

I am glad that a business on the Olympic Peninsula supports us; actually I am glad ANY business supports us as we haven't been getting much love from other major donors. Credit for this goes to the decades of staff members that have gone each weekend and enjoyed a Fat Smitty burger and supported that business. I have been there several times, however back in my day, it was a German restaurant. Only once have I been there when it has been Fat Smitty's. My local burger place is in Port Hadlock at local watering hole called the Valley Tavern. The place is as interesting as the people sitting around the central bar. The tavern sports purple and gold colors, so you know where their loyalty lies. To me, the Valley Tavern burger is much better than the Fat Smitty's burger.....3/4 lb fresh ground beef, American cheddar, onions, "secret" sauce, pickles and of course....jalapenos....mmmmmm. Not for the weak hearted or gastrically challenged. It is a meal. Alas, I do bow to Fat Smitty's though for their support and will most likely swing by there in the next month or two to say thanks.......and have a burger.

Homecoming

2011-12-19T14:33:00.000-08:00

I have always enjoyed the "holiday" period. That is the time extending from late November through the beginning of January. When I was younger it was for obvious reasons; school break, skiing, lots of food, hanging out with friends and of course presents at Christmas. Although I don't celebrate the holidays today as I did then, there is still something comforting about this time of year. Perhaps it is partly due to the decorations as they light up an otherwise dreary evening. Perhaps it is due to the increase in social gatherings that occur during this time of the year (though I have missed, purposely at times, most of those). For many though, I think it has to do more with friends and family coming home for the holidays even if it is for a day or two.

It is interesting to note that "friends", "family" and "home" may have different connotations depending on how you look at it. I have more friends that I can count or even remember but they are not necessarily close both physically (physical distance) or emotionally. To me the term "friend" is synonymous with acquaintance. Through the years I have met some very nice people who at the time I may have had conversations with, perhaps had an adult beverage with but that is about it. I may move on to something else and never see nor hear from them again. If our paths cross in the future, it would be a pleasant "hello" and perhaps a conversation but that is about it. These are the type of people that when someone says to you, "do you know such-and-such..." you would answer "yes, seems like a nice person." Then you will be told that the person is something other than what you had thought. I usually respond by saying I didn't know that person that well but they were fine when I knew them. That is in opposition to family. To me "family" is being part of a group that is not necessarily related by blood but instead by a common bond, an association or perhaps more importantly, an affinity for. I have a large family that extends throughout my life and these are people that I do my best to stay in touch with even if we are not physically close to each other (and again by physical I mean the physical distance between two places......get your mind out of the gutter). These are folks I have met and gotten to know through experiences involving my education, scouting, professional life, etc. Far more than friends, these are the people I want to spend time with, the people I go to for help. Some are closer than others but all can have my attention. As time passes I am finding that members of my family are more on the younger side than the older side of me. I don't necessarily like that change but I do like the caliber of my younger family. "Home" to me is not simply a roof over my head or a residence; it is a refuge, a place that I feel the most comfortable. The place I live today and have for some time is not considered home to me, it is a place where I keep my stuff. I am at home when I am on the canal; I am at home when I am with the closest of my family. In this manner the old saying is right "home is where the heart is."

So here we are, a little less than a week away from Christmas. Most of our staff who were away at college have returned and many want to get together to say hi. Friends gather together to celebrate the holiday season more than they do all year long. The season brings families back home and perhaps that is why I enjoy this season more than others (of course all the homemade candies help too). For me it will be a quiet, hopefully still night when I sit at my home and welcome the arrival of Christmas.

I want to welcome home our wayward staff who have returned from college. Take the time and get together with your camp family when you are in Seattle (well, except for those of you not from Seattle). You will find that being with your friends extends beyond the shores of the Hood Canal.

Camp Parsons 5-0

2011-12-17T11:17:00.000-08:00

Camp Parsons was in the middle of some law enforcement drama this past Thursday. It was around noon when you heard sirens coming off of Mt. Walker in the distance. Anyone at camp has heard this before, particular on still days when there is not much wind. I always found it funny that either law enforcement or fire would always have their lights and sirens on going to a call when there is no one around to alert to get out of the way. Even during summer camp if we have the ambulance come to make a simple non-emergent transport to the hospital, they are in camp with emergency lights on and not driving any quicker than we drive around camp.

In any event, I digress; the sirens were coming close as one would hear as they zip by the Bee Mill Rd turn off, however this time they got louder. Not just one but several. Before you knew it, Jefferson County Sheriff's cars and State Troopers were all along Bee Mill by the Archery Range and the Sheriff himself was down talking with Ken. Here is the official Jefferson County report:

On December 15, 2011 at 11:48 AM, a Jefferson County Sheriff's Deputy on routine patrol observed a vehicle at the pass on Mount Walker, US Hwy. 101 mile marker 301. A check of the vehicle's license revealed that the registered owner had a suspended driver's license and several warrants for his arrest. Deputy Shane Stevenson turned to catch up to the vehicle, and again observed the Blue 1998 Ford Explorer partially concealed by a tractor trailer beside the roadway. As the Deputy approached, the vehicle sped away southbound on 101. Deputy Stevenson pursued the vehicle with lights and siren about 2 miles onto Bee Mill Road where the suspect reached speeds in excess of 80 miles per hour in a posted 30 mile MPH zone. The Deputy noted what appeared to be a female passenger in the vehicle and backed off of his speed through the residential neighborhood, loosing visual contact with the vehicle.

Sheriff Tony Hernandez and several Deputies responded to the area. The suspect's vehicle was located abandoned on an old logging road up a steep hill near the Camp Parson's Boy Scout Camp. Deputy Scott Boyd and his K-9 partner Rico responded as other Deputies and a Washington State Patrol Trooper established a security perimeter in the area. The female passenger, a 21 year old Sequim woman, walked out of the brush and turned herself in to the K-9 team. It was determined that she had been terrified during the attempted elude and had attempted to talk the suspect into stopping. She said that at one point she had been knocked unconscious after her head struck the interior of the vehicle while the driver made an abrupt turn. The woman is considered a victim and was released at the scene.

After nearly 2 1/2 hours of searching, the K-9 team located the driver concealed by branches about 50 to 60 feet up a Cedar tree. The suspect initially refused to climb down but eventually complied with the Deputies orders. The suspect was identified as 26 year old Jason W. Tuff of Port Angeles. Tuff was booked into the Jefferson County Jail on charges of attempting to elude a police vehicle, driving while license suspended/revoked first degree, obstructing a law enforcement officer and reckless endangerment.

Ken and I joked around that the kid must have been a former scout who knew where to go.....but then again, when he went up the road to the 10,000 gallon tank......there was no place else to go. I am surprised he got up that hill with a car as even with our trucks, it is a bit of a bumpy ride. After jumping out of the car, he had no place to go except up the hill.....again, not easy. I am not sure what cedar tree he went up, but since that area was cut in the 80's, there really is nothing that tall that you can't see up.

Oh well, another story to tell and another chapter into the museum.

Mine

2011-12-15T11:17:00.000-08:00

If you invest yourself into any particular activity you have a tendency to look upon it as your own. If you have put time, energy, creativity and perhaps even money into a project or a "thing" you have a natural belief that you "own" it. Camp facilities and the programs that they offer are no different. People who work on a facility or put on a program truly invest themselves into what they do and will have a tendency to look at it as being theirs. What I find interesting is that there can either be ownership of the whole thing (facility and program) or each separately.

The example I see which takes each part separately is when we deal with our older staff alummi, usually circa '40-'50. Many of these folks are still around today (though it seems they are beginnnig to "move on") and when they come to camp, they discuss more about what they did rather than the facility itself. It seems to me that they are oblivious to the property (which really hasn't changed that much in real terms) and focus on what activities they did. Now, that may not seem unusual to some, however it is the facility that sets the stage for the activities, ie: Swim Beach, the Pier, SMG, etc. Back then, it was not easy to drive to camp so when you came to camp, you would stay there. There wasn't the quick trip to Fat Schmittys or Poulsbo, they usually arrived to camp by taking a ferry to the Kitsap peninsula then a ferry from the peninsula to Brinnon. So when they worked at camp, the only avenue to get away from camp was to go hiking which most of them did. The camp wasn't used during the off season so it was truly a summer event during this era. As you move forward in time, more people have invested themselves into the physical aspects of camp through work parties, service projects, etc as well as attend camp. Today, most of our supporters can walk around camp and see what they have helped build; either through their own work or through their financial backing. More importantly, they actually get to see the facility in action as the program plays out. If you look at our current veteran staff, they are here in the winter or summer.......they are invested in all aspects of camp.

The other aspect of ownership is the continuity of the leadership. Most of the camp leaders came back year after year, from the beginning of operations till pretty much through the late 50's. However during the 60's, the camp director would change year after year. Although some of the younger staff would serve for several years in a row, the leadership did not. As a result, we have found that this decade really has been the hardest one to try to get a true coherent historical timeline out of. After years of talking to people of that time we are pretty sure we have all the names of the camp directors of that decade and we are also pretty sure we know who served when. Still, there is debate everytime a veteran staff member from the era appears. The continuity reappeared in the early 70's with Reid Hansen who served for 7 seasons as camp director then Walt who served for 14 seasons, Bob for 6 seasons and now Ken. I didn't forget you Gary...........79, but you were coming off of being Ranger. Each director overlapped the previous; Walt was Gary's Ranger, Bob was Walt's Ranger, Ken was Bob's Ranger. The result of this continuity is having a staff that takes pride in their facility as well as the work they do and the program they put on. It helps strengthen a tradition of service as well as customer service. In essence, it makes it a second home to those who work there over serveral seasons. Of course there are potential problems with continuity as well. Some people get into a "rut" and do the same thing over and over......even when it is apparent that it is not working. Sometimes you "pooh-pooh" ideas that really have some real merit. I learned a long time ago that no matter how ridiculous a suggestion would seem to me......I would think about it for a couple of hours or overnight, before dismissing it....(kidding). An example of this was when the Eco/Con director wanted to have a campwide disco party in his area to promote his program. At first it was "you want to do what?" and despite my concerns, we still gave it the go ahead. It was a hit. So was the Beach Bonanaza when that was started as well (spin off of the disco party). Regardless, you have to be on your toes to make sure that you are moving along and delivering an exciting program that contiues to align with the aims and methods of scouting.

The other aspect about potential "ownership" which I find interesting is from outside groups. I remember a UPS coordinator referring to Camp Parsons as theirs, when they only use it for eight days. I am sure it was more of a reference....but still amusing. The same goes for other outside groups that may use the facility for a long weekend year after year. We find that even troops have a tendency to feel that it is "their" facility to use. In other words, they want to use the tower, the kayaks, the rifle range just like it was summer camp. I feel bad when I remind them that their $15 BSA membership fee is so they can be part of the organization......not to use camp......that is a little larger fee as you can see when you apply to come to summer camp. There is too much money and effort to keep the facilities available for all to safely use, not just a few groups who want it their way.

This concept of ownership is just that; a concept. The Chief Seattle Council owns the facility and we serve there at the pleasure of the council. The council is not a singular entity as it is governed by a group of dedicated individual who support the BSA. We own our talents, we own our work and we own who we are. I know all of this.......but Camp Parsons is still MY camp.

December Ramblings

2011-12-14T16:49:00.000-08:00

The December AWP was this past weekend with six attendees. However despite that small turn out a fair amount of work got done. The two Andy's worked on finishing the siding on the new Trading Post as well as made an attempt at hanging doors (which I think Ken helped out on). Gary and Greg continued lacing electrical conduits and wires throughout the TP. Slowly but surely that project will be done before you know it.....of course I have been saying that for several months, but we are getting close. We had a great turkey dinner on Friday evening and a roast on Saturday night all of which was cooked on the Traegger. Good eating!! It was a good crowd and I found the whole weekend very relaxing even though I had to get up early to go to a meeting on Sunday.

For a good part of Saturday afternoon Ken, Greg, Gary and I sat down with the architect to finish up our design and development drawings. We have finally reached this milestone after numerous meetings and e-mails. Next will come construction documents and then............well, who knows. As the song goes, "I said honey, we ain't got money......" We did however, receive word that we may be the recipients of an interesting donation from a local business. I need to find out if I can share that info with all of you but you will be pleased as many of you unknowingly helped us out. We still have some site construction issues ahead of us, like where are we going to put the delivery truck roundabout and what we are going to put on the loading dock. However these are very minimal when compared to how far we have come.

I am always proud of my staff as they shine both on the "field" as well as off. The following is a link to a guest column that Ian Engelbeck wrote for the Seattle Times regarding student responsibility with regards to their education. Good job Ian.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2016960751_guest08engelbeck.html

Applications went out this past weekend to our previous staff, CITs and to those scouts who took time to fill out an information card (legibly) last summer. I think we sent out about 300-400 applications and I am hoping that some of those will come back to us filled out. Our interview process begins in February and goes through March. We have a great season ahead of us so hopefully we will have a lot of returning staff.

I have been watching the statistics on our home webpage and I am surprised at the number of visits that page gets every day. We have been averaging about 70-80 new visits each day. Perhaps that may include some people who come back on the same day, but still that is quite a lot. During the summer months we can get as many as 300 visits but during the off season it usually hangs around 20 each day. I am not one to complain.....I just need to make that front page more "exciting."

Biding Time?

2011-12-08T11:18:00.001-08:00

I woke up this morning with a searing pain in my left shoulder. As the gloomy haze of awaking in the morning began to clear I briefly thought to myself; here it comes, the classic massive heart attack early in the morning with me having so much more to do with my life. However as I rolled myself over it quickly became apparent that it wasn't my ticker that was having a problem, it was the fact that I had slept on my left arm in such a contorted way and was now paying the price of a mild tendinitis and strain. Good that I would live, bad that it was painful putting on my shirt to go to work today.

As morbid as it may sound, we are all biding time until our time comes to an end. No surprise there, life after all is a journey and what you make and get out of that journey is up to you. It has happened to me more than once, where I had the brief concern that something was going to happen that was going to end things fairly quick and with me unprepared (like in a seemingly uncontrolled dive in an aircraft) and you think of all the things you have not done or the things that you could have said to others. Even more interesting is that when you get past these little scares you don't do any of the things you thought you should do when it was obvious to you that life was coming to an end. Where is your "bucket list"? When I started going to college, my father made a big deal about saying good bye to me every time I would leave when I came home. I kept saying to him that I would see him in a couple of weeks....don't worry. He didn't worry, but he never knew what tomorrow would bring and this might be the last time he said anything to me. When he eventually passed much later on, I never felt that we had something more to say as everytime we talked it was like the last time we would see each other. Morose? Perhaps, but it was comforting to know that everythig had been said when his time came to an end though it was sad that I knew I would never see him again.

Time moves along quietly and quickly. For many teenagers it doesn't past fast enough and for many of us older folks, it is passing waaaaaaaay too quickly. During this time of the year I often say to myself "Hmm, Christmas is here again" while being oblivious to the fact that another birthday has come and gone. I remember summers when I was a teenager sitting on Mystery Beach on the weekend feeling very relaxed and enjoying a long Saturday afternoon in the sun, or even better, putting a lawn chair in a canoe and sleeping comfortably in the middle of Jackson Cove on a calm day. That was decades ago.....seems like yesterday.

I enjoy watching our staff grow and move on to make something out of themselves. I had one former staff member drop me a note just the other day telling me he had received his branch designation in Aviation for the US Army as he prepares to graduate this May from the US Military Academy at West Point. He was just a young teenager six years ago and now ready to go on an exciting (and dangerous) journey. Another has retired from the US Navy this past year after a twenty year career of flying fighters. He worked for me when he was a teenager as well. CEOs, CFOs, VPs, Lawyers, Physicians, Police Officers, Firefighters and on and on are the careers that many of our staff members move on to as time goes by. You watch them develop their careers and their families, become very successful and do good things for society as a whole while you remember their humble beginnings at camp. Now, did camp make them what they are today.....hardly; parents, teachers, coaches and others played a huge role in the development of a person. However camp did have its influence as nowhere else is a young person able to put to practice what they have learned in all aspects; living on their own, being held to certain responsibilities, role modeling, teaching and being good citizens. I am somewhat jealous when I look at what some of my staff have gone and done and wonder if I got left behind, still standing on the Hood Canal. Then I remember what I have done in my life, the friends I have made, the experiences I have had and how hard I worked so I could be back on the Hood Canal as I am today. I am happy.

As I reminisce with some of the veteran staff members who have worked for me, they often tell me that they wished they had worked one more summer on staff. Many feel they left prematurely as they thought (or advised) that they had to do something else to make themselves "well-rounded" in experience or they thought it would be important for their future career. Apparently most of those other "things" that occupied their time in lieu of camp in retrospect were not worth missing another season for.......but life goes on and they are not worse for it.

So we can bide our time by doing things we think we should be doing instead of doing the things we want to do. Obviously there are things we have to do such as make an income or provide for our families but outside of that, it is what we make of ourselves. I found out a long time ago that tomorrow never comes, it is always just today. I plan for future "todays" but as I have said in my previous posts, sometime is not a date. We are planning for the 2012 season which starts on a specific date in June. I hope that many of my previous staff returns and joins me to deliver another memorable season to those scouts who attend. However for today it is loading myself with ibuprofen to get rid of this damn pain.

Motivating Youth

2011-12-06T10:29:00.001-08:00

Motivating youth to develop their talents and be the best they can be is a skill or art that can be at times a challenging undertaking. Parents, teachers, coaches, Scoutmasters and many more role models all have a hand in motivating young people to live up to their talents or even push beyond them. Parents play the key role in this undertaking, not only by their own influence on their children but also deciding what their children should be exposed to when it comes to outside mentoring. I think all parents at some point understand that their own children at times will listen to "others" over themselves, even when those others are telling them the same thing. That is why it is so important that parents really keep a close eye on who is mentoring their children. Some choose sports groups, religious groups, youth groups or other formal structured groups. Many times it is a combination of numerous groups to get that well rounded experience. One of those groups is scouting, particularly if parents are drawn to the values which the scouting program adheres to.

At Camp Parsons, motivating youth is not a separate issue we deal with but well ingrained into everything we do. I don't know how anyone could have a career as a "motivational speaker" as I believe the motivation comes from a firm belief that what you are doing is a "good" thing. When we assemble a new staff each summer the first thing that they learn is that although they are all Boy Scouts, their presence on the Hood Canal is not because they are participating in a program but instead they are employed to run that program. Their presence is voluntary and dependent on how they perform. As opposed to a Scoutmaster whose role is to mentor, encourage and allow for mistakes, our job has nothing to do with developing youth but instead making sure our employees can deliver the program. The fact that they develop as a result of this is a great side benefit. So our staff knows that their presence is at the pleasure of the camp and that their sole purpose is to serve the scouts that attend during those summer months. We don't plead with our staff to do the right thing nor do we ask them to "do it for us". Instead we expect them to live up to the talents which we know they have and were hired for. We treat them as adults by developing their skills to do the job, giving them a goal, encouraging them on the way to that goal and then hold them responsible if they are unable to attain the goal particularly if it is was because of their lack of work. Harsh? Probably, but it is an important life lesson to learn here on Dabob Bay than in the "real world" as things in the real world have a tendency to follow you. At the end of the day we are not that harsh as we will work with our staff to develop their skills and give them a first, second, third and even sometimes a fourth chance. However we do this only if they show that they are motivated to learn....it is up to them, if they are not interested they go home. That has been the case at times in the past and I only pray that they learn something from that and become a better person.

We have been extremely lucky at camp to have outstanding staff members who exemplify this talent of motivation not only while they were at camp but in their daily lives. I had the opportunity to spend time with my good friend and former Program Director, Adam Desautels and I admire his ability to motivate the young men he coaches in high school basketball. He is quick to let his team understand that their participation is voluntary and if they are not "all in" on the team (all practices, all games) then they are dismissed. He gives them every chance to develop their talents but ultimately it is their responsibility to do their best....no excuses. Actually it was my discussion with Adam that got me thinking about motivation when he shared a quote he used recently from another coach (who by the way plagiarised it) to motivate his players. He doesn't need to use anything else than himself......he is an excellent role model and that really should be enough.

Another good example of who can motivate people is another good friend and former Program Director Billy Price. Billy routinely talks to groups and schools about being a functional quadriplegic. It doesn't matter who he is in front of, he captures the room and everyone there. I have seen him do this in camp when talking with new staff members as well as in public outside of camp. I can't even describe what he says or how he says it......all I know is that people are motivated by what he tells them. As above, he doesn't ask them to do things for him or because he thinks it is the right thing to do, but to do things if they think it is the right thing for them.

I can't tell you how many times a parent has asked me what secret we have that motivates their child to not only want to come back and work for a pathetic salary but seems to have motivated them year round in other activities. My response is that we reinforce what they parents had taught them before. I guess hearing from from us our staff probably figure out that their parents were right to begin with. Then again, it is easy to motivate the caliber of young adult that we are lucky to hire.

Dinner Will Be Delayed.....

2011-12-05T14:19:00.001-08:00

It was an exciting goal.....having the new dining hall up and running by the 2013 camping season. However with each passing day towards the end of the year this seems unlikely. Oh....no worries, the dining hall will be built sometime.....unfortunately "sometime" is neither a time or a date. From what I understand we are not making much traction with major donors. By "major" we mean someone or some entity that would step up and fund more than half the cost of what it would take to build this new facility which will take us into the next thirty plus years of use. We continue to receive donations here and there, all of which are needed and ALL of which are appreciated, but at this rate it will take a while until the capital is present to begin to build this structure.

Some people have mentioned to us that maybe we are being too grand in our approach, that maybe we can scale back and see if there could be savings in that. Those are certainly valid ideas but unfortunately there is no sense in building a facility that will not meet our needs, still have us lacking in services and still have to pay more to maintain over time. No, if we are going to do this, we are going to do this right and not something that will get us by for a few years. There is nothing extravagant going into this new facility, but the materials being used are ones that will require little maintenance and are of the quality to withstand the onslaught of three thousand scouts as well as the ever changing external environment. You buy cheap then you get cheap and you will always be fixing cheap. At the end of the day it is not cheap.....just something annoying, costly and doesn't serve the purpose you meant it to be. We have looked at everything, including the size and I for one do not wish to change what we have discussed and have come to a decision to have and what we need.

I am not trying to "whine" as I know that we will eventually secure a benefactor who will come through for us, the only question is when. The cost of the project is not going to get any cheaper. It is frustrating for me, however, to be part of a council that has supporters with tremendous financial backing that are generous donors to many scouting programs but none of which involve Camp Parsons. I often wonder if this is a side effect of our success? Since we do so well financially and programmaticly we may be off their philanthropic "radars" and maybe we are not doing a good enough job getting our message across to let them know we need their help. Many people believe that money generated by camp operations goes back into camp.....those people would be mistaken. The camp generates an income for the Seattle Council who in turns determines our budget and what money is to be spent on operations each year. The remainder of the income is used for other council programs that may not be self supportive financially but add value to the scouting program. After all, scout camping in only one aspect of the scouting program (though an important one in my book). I just hope that our financially sound supporters understand the value of what the camp program offers to scouting youth in our communities as well as the connection to local history. I hope they think of us before donating money to national BSA interests. Regardless, their support will always be welcomed and appreciated.

In the meantime maybe we will go to two cookout days for each troop. That should open the dining hall up a little more, allow for scouts to use the patrol method a little more and perhaps reduce the complaints of industrial menus and cooking. Then again, we probably will just get more complaints. Christmas is coming upon us quick.....maybe Santa has a surprise for us.

Regulation Redux

2011-12-01T12:22:00.001-08:00

I received a few e-mails with questions regarding my previous post and I wanted to clarify a few points. When I began writing yesterday I was pulled away for things here and there at work and at the end of the day there was so much I wanted to write I found myself paraphrasing more. So let me try to be direct about a few of my points.

I believe in regulations and I believe in standards. However, if we are going to have regulations and standards then ALL Boy Scout resident camps (not Venturing, not National High Adventure, not Cub Scout Day/Resident camps) must adhere to them, no exceptions. If that is the case then the standards have to be a) succinct, b) practical, c) reasonably attainable. Mandatory standards should be one of safety such as clean drinking water, safe buildings, safe equipment, etc. Things that put life and limb at risk and if the mandatory standard cannot be met then the camp is closed until those deficiencies are met. It doesn't operate conditionally, it doesn't operate temporarily, it is shut down (the health department would if we had an outbreak of any suspected disease). That makes the "mandatory" standards that much more important, as they have the proverbial teeth. As far as the rest of the standards that pertain to quality go, then fine....if you get "X" percentage or more then you get an A rating and so on. These regulations or standards have to have words like "will", "must" and "always" and never "should" or "may" in the requirement.

As far as the volunteer inspectors that come around to visit each year, I mean no disrespect to these individuals who give their time as well as travel expenses to come and visit our camp. However if you are to take these standards seriously then you need to have people who understand the professional nature of scouting and the facility. Every year half of our inspection team barely makes it around the camp.....I have the medic follow close behind with the defibrillator in his hand. Each one has their pet interests (shooting sports, crafts, etc) and expect you to attain a standard they think should be happening NOT what the published BSA standard states. The professional Boy Scouts have a vested interest in any facility they run, they should take a vested interest in truly inspecting their camps.

Certification for skill as opposed to Certification for training are two different things. Being qualified as an expert marksman or as an instructor for rifle or shotgun use doesn't qualify you to manage a BSA rifle range, only NCS certification shows that you have had training on how to run a safe range. These two things can be one and the same BUT THEY DON'T HAVE TO BE. Same goes for programs like the tower. I may hire some guys who work for REI on their climbing wall but that doesn't qualify them to be the tower director, only NCS does that. NCS doesn't qualify you to be an expert climber or rappeller but it teaches you to run a safe tower. Can they both be the same? Sure, but they don't have to be. Same goes for Aquatics. My point being is when regulations are so tight that it limits your ability to put on a program without any improvement in safety, you might find yourself regulating yourself out of business. This is where the standards or regulations must be practical. Having lots of lifeguards doesn't make your beach more safe and is very impractical as opposed to requiring everyone who gets on a boat to wear life vests which does improve safety and is practical.

Bottom line is that regulations and standards should be in place to assure we are doing our mission and doing it in a safe manner without unnecessarily hindering the challenges we want to undertake. Despite my statement about standards across the field, if the Scout Executive sanctions some exception, fine.....they are the ones that will be responsible should something happen as a result of that (and that is fair). When the new version of the standards come out, I hope this idea of practicality is sewn throughout the new policies.

Regulating A Summer Camp

2011-11-30T14:08:00.001-08:00

The purpose of a resident BSA camp boils down to two things; 1) A program that promotes, supports and demonstrates ALL elements found with the Aims and Methods of the Boy Scouts of America; 2) The scouts have fun. What the regulations want of a BSA camp is simply that we provide a safe environment from which to put on the program and adherence to the standards which are born from the guide to safe scouting AND that we do offer a program that encompasses all aspects of the Aims and Methods of the Scouting program. These reasons are why we have National Standards which are in place to govern camp operations. I had mentioned some time ago that the national council was looking at revisions to the current standards which I think is a great idea.   However, before they do that, they need to understand what a standard means.

A "standard" is defined as a level of attainment by which we all adhere or agree to. Let me give you an example of the standard, "the staff wears the BSA uniform correctly". We all know what the BSA uniform is, there are rules/regulations that pertain to this so it cannot be left up to interpretation...it should be black and white. Yet some camps make up their own uniforms and forgo the BSA standard and are allowed to do so. There is no Boy Scout camp that should stray from this standard and if they are allowed to do so, THEN GET RID OF THE STANDARD. You see, for some camps it is convenient to do things that are simple like let the staff wear any kind of uniform because the management does not want to take the time to enforce this.....but then why have "uniforming" as a method? The methods of scouting are not there to conform to your personal viewpoints........you joined the program knowing that we adhere to the methods. If that is an issue for you, get out. The other thing that national needs to lose are subjective "mandatory" standards. "The camp offers an exciting program......." Really? Some people find excitement jumping out of a plane, others find it sitting on the couch playing video games.  How do we agree and adhere to what is "exciting" and who gets decide what is exciting or not? The geriatric volunteer who is "inspecting" our camp?

The standards are in place so that we run the camp safely and we run it using the scouting methods, it is as simple as that. There are county, state and federal laws that govern the storing and serving of food; the management of water supplies; the inspections of buildings/facilities and equipment. Use them or adapt them to a summer camp. "All fire extinguishers will be checked yearly"......now that is a standard that can be applied in Seattle and Boston. "Fire extinguishers should be in good working order" is NOT a standard....what does "should" or "good working" order mean? Inspector A may believe one thing, Inspector B another. Auxillary verbs like "should" cannot be anywhere in a standard just like the words "may" or "some". The national council has gotten this right at times. Previously it used to say that the Ranger will be certified by NCS within a year of their employment (does that mean that a camp must have a ranger?); now they can make the option without changing the standard: IF the camp employs a full time Ranger they must be certified within one year. What a difference the word "if" makes.

I for one want standards so that we have a direction to follow just like any other BSA camp in the US. I should be able to pluck any staff member from any camp in the country and put him/her at Camp Parsons and never have to say to them "we don't do that here." Standards that are properly written and enforced bring respect to what a program can offer, not only for those who work the program but also for the folks who stand on the sidelines and see what we do. We have strict standards for BSA Lifeguard.....but they are only as good if they are enforced to the letter and not modified. If we can insure that, then it is a qualification that would be honored outside of the BSA as an equal lifeguarding qualification from any other national agency because we held to a standard. However, the standards must not inhibit our primary purpose.....to provide a safe facility for the scouting program. If there is a standard that says that you can operate an aquatics facility ONLY if you are 21 or older AND hold NCS certification as well as Aquatics Instructor BSA then you already have hindered some council's ability to operate an aquatics facility which can be done safely without that rule. The importance of having an Aquatics Director certified by the National Camping School is to insure that the director understands all aspects of the aquatics standards and how to operate a safe beach within those standards.......it has nothing to do with being a lifeguard.....you can hire certified lifeguards to staff the beach. So the standard should require a NCS certified adult to be Aquatics Director AND the standard should require that the instructor of of BSA Lifeguards be an Aquatics Instructor BSA; but the standard SHOULD NOT require them to be one and the same. If they are, then fantastic. I use the word "should" here as we are dealing with an option of how the standard could read. Whether we are talking about the Tower or Shooting Sports or Aquatics, safety has nothing to do with the expertise of the particular activity but instead the level-headed adult that is hired to assure that the standards are adhered to......you can always hire expertise, but they may not be NCS trained. If they are one and the same....GREAT!!! If not, then do not limit small councils with limited resources to forgo programs because they do not have the financial ability to recruit staff that are proficient leaders as well as have the expert ability. I don't need to be a marathon runner to organize a marathon and surprisingly you do not need to know how to swim to manage an aquatics program safely (though it probably would help.)

The new draft is heading this way somewhat, but they are getting a little tighter on things that require more bureaucracy and add nothing to safety or enhance the program. There are some good changes but I don't think there are enough. I believe that the standards should be succinct and direct and if that were the case, they would lose the number of bullet points on those standards. I also believe that volunteers should be removed from camp "inspections" as they will never be held to the consequences of any mistake that is made. The council scout executive is held responsible by the board for all things that happen within the council. If an accident occurs as a result of non-compliance to the standard, the scout executive will be held responsible.  I would propose that members of the Executive Committee who are actively involved in either camping or facility operations be the extension of the scout executive assuring the governance of the council that their camp is in good working order and adhering to the standards. If exceptions are made by those ultimately responsible for what might happen, fine....however given the recent spate of lawsuits due to non-complicance of other policies, I doubt that would be a good idea. I often hear that we will see some changes soon. Well, some is not a number and soon is not a time......let's make this a professional endeavor.

....And A Time For Every Purpose Under Heaven.

2011-11-28T09:51:00.001-08:00

Many people will take this reference to the 1959 Byrd's song which was taken almost verbatim from the Book of Ecclesiastes. The first refrains are:

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven:

A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;

A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;

A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;

We were informed on Friday of Jim Nussbaum's death on Thanksgiving day. For those of you who do not know Jim, he was the iconic symbol of the "old guard" of Camp Parsons scouts and staff members. Jim first came to camp as a scout in the mid-30's and came on staff towards the end of that decade. He had several positions in camp, but he spent a good portion of his time on backpacking and climbing treks. Jim was always good with stories and he used to regale us about hiking trips with 40 plus scouts of all ages scampering up Mt. Anderson (without being tied off) or crawling up the Brothers and fighting off the rats that somehow would hang out up there. It was interesting that he could never remember specific names but he could always remember specific events. Jim went on to serve in the Army during WWII and given his skiing and mountain climbing abilities he was assigned to the famed 10th Mountain Division. Jim saw combat in northern Italy and was wounded during an attack. After the war he spent most of his working life as a salesman but still hiked and skied.

I met Jim back in the early 80's when he started coming up to camp more often usually to take pictures. He must have taken thousands of pictures and videos in those days, many of which became the photo basis of our current museum. Although Jim was a staunch supporter of scouting, we found him to be a bit of a challenge from time to time. Many staff members will remember him as the guy who would be right in the middle of the flag ceremony taking pictures with a light source that was stronger than the sun. Even worse, he used that light source during campfires. It would be hard to have a solemn moment at the campfire with him taking pictures. However Jim was only doing his best to capture the "essence" of a boy scout summer camp on film for others to see. He spent a lot of time, energy and his own money to help us promote camp as well as take on the museum as a personal project. For that, we will always be grateful.

Unfortunately Jim is one of the old guard that are slowly leaving us. Bill Danner, Bob Lamm, Loody Christoferro, Grant Wilcox and many more have preceded Jim in death. I am glad I had the opportunity to know these folks and was able to hear what camp was like during those early days. Because of Jim's mannerisms I found it difficult to really engage him in a conversation as those mannerism were very annoying to me. I knew that someday I would feel guilty that I had not treated him with more respect and that day is here now. Despite that, I am grateful and thankful for his work at Camp Parsons when he was a youth right through his elder years. There is a time for every purpose and Jim's time has come now. May he rest in peace.

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T10:45:00.001-08:00

Although some of us have to grind the proverbial mill stone for this holiday it is still a time to reflect on ones life and rejoice and be thankful for what one has and hopefully be able to share that with others. It is unfortunate that for most of us we have a tendency to focus on the things we dislike or do not look forward to. I have an exam coming up; I have to do this particular chore; I have to work this particular shift; I have to drive over the pass in the snow and it is going to be a pain, and so on. We have a tendency to focus on the negatives instead of the positives we have; looking forward to being with family; looking forward to a vacation; looking forward to being with friends; looking forward to the summer camping season starting again and so on. It is interesting that we look back on the fond memories (which we didn't realize were fond at the time) and seldom look forward to new ones. We have taken a senior staff crew to Mexico several times in the past 10 years and you don't realize how great that was until you talk about it later. I am annoyed today because I have to work, but I am looking forward to the football game(s) this weekend when I get a chance to watch my favorite sport live and be with good friends.

So today I will reflect on my life and be thankful for the things I have. I am thankful for my health (at least so far), I am thankful for my education and for the people who encouraged me and made it possible for me to have the education that I have. I am thankful for the opportunities that I have had; some which were lucky to come my way and some that were offered to me and others which I pursued. I am thankful for the skills that I have as well as the opportunities to develop them. Most importantly, I am thankful for my friends....a seemingly ever expanding pool of individuals.

I have mentioned before that Camp Parsons has been a focal point for most things in my life and that is no different when it comes to my friends. Almost everyone who has been a good friend of mine has spent some time at camp; whether it was working on staff, being part of the adult work party or just visiting for a weekend during the season or during the off season. From high school to college and beyond this has been a centerpiece for me. Some may think that is sad........but for me it has been a wonderful continuum and a point in which to bring different friends of mine together. It is another reason why I consider that small part of the Hood Canal my proverbial "home". Indeed, if I was not working today I probably would be up there by myself, cooking a small dinner and sitting out on the deck in the wind and the rain and be a happy, thankful little camper enjoying all that was around me.

Finally, I am thankful for the young men and women who have worked for me in the past. They have brought life to our facility and joy to the many scouts who have attended, all of whom were probably thankful for the opportunity. So to all of my friends.......Happy Thanksgiving!

A Standard Without A Standard

2011-11-21T09:42:00.001-08:00

Pretty much every facet of our lives is regulated. From our jobs to our personal lives we live by a set of rules which are either mandated or implied. One would say that we could not have a civilized society if we did not live by a set of common "laws" which are nothing more than rules that can be argued depending on how you view them. Without this you would simply have anarchy.....though I don't believe that anarchy truly exists outside of a theoretical realm as almost all the people who have proclaimed themselves anarchist seem to work together as a group.....with a set of rules.

What has this to do with scouting and summer camp in particular? Well, it is no surprise that camp (and scouting) operates under specific rules and regulations in order to provide a safe environment while allowing us to achieve our goal of providing a great program and furthering the aims and methods of the scouting program. These regulations go outside of just scout imposed ones; we live with local, county, state and federal regulations as well. How we construct a building, how we cook our food, how we provide drinking water are all regulated by government agencies. However within the realm of scouting we operate on guidelines set forth in the "Guide for Safe Scouting" and in the case of summer camp operations we operate under a set of National Standards. For anyone who has worked at a BSA camp, they have heard the words "National Standards" numerous times but their only contact with this individually really is our annual "visitation" which is (and will be called from here on out) an inspection to assure that we adhere to those standards. It has been my personal opinion that the standards have been and continue to be a joke. Not for the content of what is in the standards (though there are some that do not make sense), but more for the adherence and policing of the standards.

Some of the content within the standards are sound; adherence with local, county and state laws; adequate inventories and budget controls; staff selection and training; adherence to principles within the Guide to Safe Scouting (where appropriate). However there are nonsensical items such as "challenging programs", "scout spirit is evident" and so on. Things that have you aksing; how do you inspect to a subjective rule? Either you have it or you don't have it. This leads to the real issue.....who are the people inspecting you? Now in deference to those of you who read my blog and are part of inspection teams, please understand I don't mean to paint all these individuals with a single brush.....just the vast majority of them (and you know it). Every year we have groups of people who are volunteers from different councils whose sole training is going to a day long meeting talking about the standards come and inspect our camp. These are not folks actively running camps or training people to run camps. Many of these visitors have their own little personal expertise which may or may not have anything to do with scouting (shooting, aquatics, crafts, etc.) and get focused on items that are not even covered within the standards. In other words, they think you should be doing something that is not within the standards because they "feel" that is important. I am tired of the guy who can build things but thinks he has the insight of a structural engineer, the volunteer firefighter who doesn't think our firefighting equipment is good because they wouldn't meet his standards (though they do of the professional firefighters who inspect and use our equipment) or the guy who thinks if a scout is seen alone, then we should fail in the fact that we are not encouraging the buddy method. I appreciate their time and I appreciate their love for scouting.......but they can go away when it comes time for "inspection."

I for one think that all BSA camps should be held to specific standards and that they are inspected to that standard by individuals who are well versed in the specifics within the standards......not just someone who raises their hand when volunteers are asked for to go on camp inspections. Along with this comes the need for the BSA to focus their efforts on making standards that are not exercises in wordsmithing but making regulations that truly do promote safety as well as taking the into consideration the environment in which we operate a seasonal BSA camp and the resources available for that seasonal operation. Lately, they have been heading the wrong way.....classic example are the yearly physicals. Talk about a waste of time, effort and money for something that all your medical experts will tell you is not adding anything more to safety. Focus the standard to the important things and enforce it.

After all the recent lawsuits you would think the BSA would understand that if their camps are not truly abiding by the standards then all is lost. If someone is injured, all it is going to take is for the plaintiff's lawyer to show non-compliance in one standard to infer non-compliance with all. Just like we have a youth protection policy.....it is only good if the policy is enforced across the nation and we all know what non-enforcement brings.

In my next post we will talk about some of the items being discussed as the BSA is looking to revamp the standards. Some are good....very good actually but some will (in my mind) be the demise of small council camps. Stay tuned.

A Catch 22?

2011-11-17T11:38:00.001-08:00

Once again allegations of child molestation have been leveled against a "gentleman" who apparently was an Assistant Scoutmaster in Spokane back the 70's......and of course, once again the usual lawyers are coming out of the woodwork to launch another lawsuit against the BSA, at least I think they are. One of the lawyers mentioned in the article is the same one who won the Portland case and prompted the BSA to assure that all adult members are a) registered and b) gone through youth protection training (which is required before you get to apply for registration). I wholeheartedly agree with this policy, indeed I think all adults who attend camp must have proof of membership before they are allowed to step foot one on camp property. By this I mean that the troop must submit the names of adults staying in camp and these names are run through the membership database to assure that they are registered. What better way to assure ourselves that on top of the youth protection program which is in place at camp, we are doing everything else within our power to keep our scouts safe. Then again, we are talking summer camp. As I recall, most of these incidents happened outside of the camp setting and within particular troops.

Scouting is an excellent program in itself, but promoting this program requires membership. There is a lot of benefit in being one of the largest youth organizations in the country. However this program depends heavily on the support of adult volunteers. These volunteers take time from their work, their families and their free time to make this program operational. Not only do they take their time, they give financially as well; Friends of Scouting, uniforms, outings for the troop, popcorn sales, etc. So as a professional scout, you really depend on these volunteers to run the program.....after all, it is a volunteer led organization. As such, you don't want to create too much hassle for these people who are giving up so much with the simple gain of their son (or in some programs, their daughter) having a great and valuable experience. Those volunteers are rewarded with that instead of money. So at what point can you push it to until you hear a volunteer say "to heck with it, it is too much hassle to go through this, I will leave it to others....." If the BSA clamps down and become extremely strict on these requirements, will the number of troops begin to fall and membership decline because it is too much hassle for the adult volunteer? When the BSA started requiring social security numbers to do background checks there was a great uproar. That is the catch.....you want to be strict and promote a safe environment by making sure we keep out "those" adults that have a history while still making it "easy" for adult volunteers to join.

I for one am ready to accept a decline in membership for this hassle if that means our scouts are that much safer. I also believe that by requiring youth protection training as a prerequisite for registration, it will go even further in educating some adults that there is more to abuse than just sexual advances. There are physical, verbal and emotional abuses amongst others. An adult making fun of a young scout in front of the scout's peers is a form of emotional abuse; calling a scout an idiot or fool; sending an innocent tenderfoot out to look for 50 yards of shoreline (all us old folks remember that) are all possible elements of abuse. These are things that we used to tell others to "suck it up" in the past but are also things which are not necessary today. Don't get me wrong, there are times when things don't go your way; you may not be popular; you may not be athletic and on and on......and that is just life. The key point is that the individual scout is not singled out to be looked down on by others......it happens in too many circumstances today.

If you wish to mentor or teach youth in the Boy Scouts then abiding by the requirements set forth by the BSA is mandatory. If you refuse to give your social security number because you are gravely concerned of identity theft, I understand, but you cannot be a member of the BSA. If you have any interest on going on campouts with your son and your troop, you just can't tag along, you must be a registered member of BSA. You can't get on the plane without a ticket, you can't practice law without passing the bar, you can't practice medicine without a license and you cannot be associated with the BSA if you are not registered. It is as simple as that.

The Chief Seattle Council has set forth a policy that to be employed by the council for summer camp, you must first produce your registration card. You will not receive a contract or be allowed to come to camp unless this requirement is satisfied first. I am all for it........but the council needs to stick behind their policy for ALL activities.....winter camp, day camp, etc. If we are going to do it, let's do it right. Let's even take it a step further.....no adult will be allowed to spend the evening unless that adult leader is a registered adult. This may even require sending an entire troop home if the adults that attend cannot prove that they are registered. I don't know any other way to assure that an individual with any type of "history" has no chance of setting one foot on our camp.

So there really is not a "catch"......the organization will have to understand that it may ruffle a few feathers or lose some adult volunteers and that is the price the organization may have to pay because the price of a scout's youth is invaluable.

Invasion!!

2011-11-16T17:01:00.001-08:00

It was a cold, windy evening when a 40 foot boat approached the pier and discharged elements of the 1st Special Forces Group based at Fort Lewis. The team had just been extracted from an unknown location in the San Juans and brought to Jackson Cove under the cover of darkness. They quickly and quietly moved onto the beach, through camp and disappeared into the woods above Rangers campsite where they remained through the evening and today until moving once again through camp and down to the beach this evening for extraction; once again to a destination unknown.

Sounds like it could be a good start to a novel. However Camp Parsons has played host to this 12 man team which is currently on a training mission from JBLM and moving throughout the Pacific Northwest. We had received a request from the group some time ago but they were vague on what they wanted to do. In any event, they appreciated the opportunity to use our facility and hope to return again. I think Ken tried to sweeten the deal to have them come back during the summer and perform a fast rope drop on the parade field and out do the rescue simulations by the Coast Guard. Nothing like having a little friendly competition amongst our armed forces.

The big news of the week is that we finally have the fire insert in the Silver Marmot Grill up and running. That's right, not only does it work......it doesn't go out until you turn it off. I know that some of you purists out there are saying, "why don't you have a real fireplace like the old days?" While I sympathize with the thought (and emotion) a functional fireplace really is not that effective today other than having aesthetic qualities. Oh, I know there are some things that you can do to make them efficient.....but trust me, you are not heating the SMG or the dining hall with a fire. This way it looks good, it looks relatively natural, there are no longer "hack" marks or broken concrete around the fireplace from you idiots who have to chop wood inside on the hearth and there is no mess which is always left by bringing wood in. We are planning this for the new dining hall and we are hoping to really have a "grand" fireplace. Certainly the design for the fireplace itself and hearth look great and we will certainly make sure that it is done right.

Speaking of the dining hall, I think I am beginning to get migraines going over each rendition of the design and development layouts. The way it works in our committee is that the architect comes out with a drawing supporting the recent changes we have made, but also has put in a few things he thinks may be better than how we have requested it to be. Greg Batie gets the first drawings and goes over it with a fine tooth comb making corrections, suggestions and remarks on electronic "sticky" notes which points to each section of the drawing he is talking about. Then it is sent out to all of us on a PDF file that when opened is about 2 inches in length and diameter. You have to enlarge the file to about 150% to start reading all the little print (well, I do at least) and then, of course, move the file to the left and right as it takes up more than the screen can show. So you get the black and white drawing with the red indicators of the new changes and suggestions by the architect then the yellow sticky notes and arrows by Greg and then......you can comment.

Despite that, it has been a good process and I would rather do that than have meeting after meeting. However, I swear to God, if I see one more window put in for "light and ventilation" (like we have either where the current dining hall is) heads will roll.........

Cold, Wet And Windy

2011-11-14T13:19:00.001-08:00

I just got back from a "senior" CP staff retreat that was held at Forks, WA. This small town sits on the northwest portion of the Olympic Peninsula and personally greets each Pacific storm as it comes on to Washington shores. It is also the fictional home of a group of vampires and werewolves that were made famous in the Twilight movie series (although they never filmed any of the movies in Forks). From what the folks we stayed with said, the author found their town on line when searching for the "wettest" city in the United States and came across their small community. Apparently many of the landmarks mentioned in the book are actual places in the city, but none of the them were used for the film. The director for the first movie came out and scouted the place but they chose areas around southwest Washington as stand ins for their town. I think the director came out and found that it was too wet and there was no places for their cast (who probably had particular needs) to stay that would be suitable. Regardless, the locals have definitely made the most of this small mention of stardom.

First, I am happy to say that no steel head or elk were harmed during our attempts to hunt and fish. The first few days were cold but beautiful; one day had absolutely no clouds in the sky, however that ended quickly on Friday. I was awoken by the sound of a downpour early that morning which really did not stop until late that afternoon. The rain wasn't as bad until the wind starting sending the moisture to every uncovered part of your body. Despite that, the countryside was beautiful and the days very relaxing. I had a chance to reacquaint myself with the Queets, Hoh, Sol Duc and Bogachiel rivers. The first few days they were crystal clear and running at the right height. Unfortunately the rain changed all of that. All in all the trip and discussions were quite good......the only problem was that we ate way too much each day.

During my youth, I used to camp quite a bit all around the Olympic Peninsula but stayed pretty much on the eastern side, closer to camp. One of the hikes I always enjoyed that would deposit me on the west side was going over Anderson Pass and down into the Enchanted Valley. It is a beautiful, down sloping hike that made the last day or two of an outing that much more enjoyable. Hiking up the Hoh was the same way, a very nice hike with a gradual incline (mostly) through the rain forest. That was when I remembered one of the reasons I stuck to the east side more........with a rain forest comes, yes, rain. We probably should offer some hikes on that side of the peninsula however the drive time really puts you off. It is about a two hour journey from camp to Forks plus the time needed to go up to the trail head. That is a long round trip drive....even worse when you pick the crew up after they have been on a long, hot hike and have an aversion to bathing during their trip and you have the dubious pleasure of a two hour drive with them in your car. Not for the faint hearted I will tell you.

When dusk came each day we would huddle around the campfire and tell bold lies. One of the things we mentioned was that the dining hall planning has been so much of a distraction that we haven't really begun planning the 2012 season. Applications will soon be mailed to previous staff, CIT's and those who legibly wrote their name on the info sheet. Once again we are starting with a "clean slate" with only ideas of what we want and where. There are a few "definites".........which may or may not involve personnel. Regardless, it will be a good season once again given the individuals that I know will return.....regardless of what position they have.

As the evening wore on so did the fire and eventually we did what we always do.....headed into Ken's cousin's entertainment room and watched football on a HD large screen TV. Camping should always be this good.

Early November Ruminations

2011-11-09T11:32:00.000-08:00

There are a number of little topics I would like to talk about but nothing currently is of interest to me at this point nor is there enough material to expound on. So we will just have some drivel about a few things.

The new Trading Post continues to move forward; word has it that most of the electrical is done and the interior walls are going up. There are a few things that need to be done for the roof as well as the front porch but it looks like this thing will be up and running in a few months. As many of you saw, the old Program Office was burned down (intentionally) and the parade field is now undergoing some grooming to lessen the pitch of that hill which will widen the parking lot somewhat as well as giving it a nice aesthetic feel. I must admit.....the field looks much bigger with the building gone, even though there is another one that replaced it.

Ken did not take my advice about burning MBC to the ground however after much thought, he has decided to refurbish it. Part of the problem is that the building is on prime real estate and it is unlikely that we could get a new permit easily enough to build something brand new. The other part of the problem is that my boys (God love them) just cannot take care of that building.....it has been abused to a point where my generation would not recognize it. Gone are the walls defining the bedrooms.....it is back to an open bay temporarily. The plan is to insulate the building, build out the bedrooms a little more and basically clean up the interior. "Oh NO....what happened to the name tags?" Burned baby....hahahahah.....burned!!! No, they have been taken down and stored.......still not sure what I am going to do with them....and yes, it will be I who decides. The next question is whether to make that a "grown-up" cabin or allow the boys back in. I am sure I will be receiving some advice about this in the next month or so.

One of my staff members lamented recently that he wished he could be left alone at some times. I must admit that I can relate to this. I find at work sometimes you just can't get things done because people keep interrupting you or sharing something that you are really not interested in. I try to be cheerful and up beat, but being the cynical man that I am, it is getting more difficult. I work with people who are very nice, but unfortunately what they think you might like is no where near what you want.........just a little peace so I can get my work done and my thoughts straight.

The draft proposal for revamping the National Standards are out for comment currently. After a brief read through, there are some good things ahead and a few things that will probably stop some smaller councils from having a summer camp. More to come on that in the future.

Reverent

2011-11-07T14:24:00.000-08:00

Just a friendly reminder, these are my personal thoughts and do not reflect the official view of the BSA or Camp Parsons.

It has been said that one should never discuss politics and religion in polite company. However one of the most contentious topics regarding the BSA is the organization's Declaration of Religious Principle; The BSA maintains that no member can grow into the best kind of citizen without recognizing an obligation to God and, therefore, recognizes the religious element in the training of the member, but is absolutely non-sectarian in its attitude towards that religious training; this is left to the member's parents and particular group the member may be affiliated with to give that attention to religious life.

I have had numerous discussions with adult leaders, friends and other staff members about the role of religion in the scouting movement. Some of the discussions have been academic while others have been contentious which is not surprising when discussing something that requires faith and comes with some passion. Lord Baden-Powell himself was a deeply devout Christian man and looked upon religion not as an "add-on" but a fundamental factor underlying the scouting movement. The educational approach within the movement consists of helping young people to transcend the material world and go in search of the spiritual values of life. I find that interesting as it ties in with our Kipling quotation that hangs in the dining hall....."something lost behind the ranges, lost and waiting for you....."

Just a reminder; these are my ruminations and do not reflect the official views of the BSA or Camp Parsons.

As I said before, Lord Baden-Powell was a Christian man and that could be demonstrated in some of his writings, particularly a foreword in a pamphlet on Scouting and Christianity where he wrote, "Scouting is nothing less than applied Christianity." That being said, he had a better grasp on this concept when he said that being in the outdoors and observing the beauties of nature was the best way to apprehend God and that no one religion had the monopoly on truth. His views on religion came down to two aspects; Love and serve God; Love and serve your neighbor. In his book "Aids to Scoutmastership" he made it very clear that the belief or creed of any member was left to the parents and that scouting was to respect that and do what it could to support the parents. As such he invited Muslims and Buddhists to pray with him at Gilwell Park much to the chagrin of many church leaders.

I think the rub for most people comes down to organized religion and the "baggage" that comes with it due to the frailty of man. Many churches have had to deal with scandals; as a Roman Catholic I was disgusted by the crimes that were committed by men who were supposed to devote themselves to the teachings of Christ. However man is not infallible and unfortunately is subject to human temptations no matter how revolting that particular temptation may be. When these things happen the message of what a religion should bring gets lost in translation. That message in my mind is the idea that there is more to the world than what you see and there is more to the world than just you. You can see it in the beauty of nature and you see it in the kindness of one person to another. Do we need organized religion for that? I don't know. You don't need to go to a doctor to be healthy but you may need to go to one if you get very ill if for nothing else advice or possibly even treatment. You don't need to have a teacher to learn, but a teacher will guide, instruct and help develop your skills for you to be successful. When one has a crisis of faith, it is good to go to a person who understands your belief system and can guide you through it. Does "religion" have to be tied to a physical church? That is the question for the individual and how you define religion. What our founder was getting at, in my humble opinion, was one of humility and service that could only be phrased in a way that an organization founded in 1905 would understand.

The only affirmation to the Declaration of Religious Principles is in the Scout Oath,...."to do my duty to God and my country...." Reverent is synonymous to respect. One should be reverent to their God but a good scout is reverent to so much more. Yes, this word has more than one meaning. Scouting is not a religious organization (a point of contention and argument).....it does not adhere to one set of rules or favors a particular sect. However Scouting is an organization of religious principles and that begins with the understanding that there is a higher power at work......what ever that might be. You would be surprised to know that many people I have worked with in the past who would consider themselves atheists or agnostics live more "Christian" lives than those who proudly (and loudly) declare themselves to be Christian. I guess God works in mysterious ways.

So these are ruminations of mine. Although I adhere to an organized group I respect all other beliefs. I have never found myself needing to defend my views (it is my faith, no one elses) nor do I see any reason to disrespect anyone elses beliefs or lack there of. I guess with that respect I can consider myself reverent.

Boy Scout Nannyism

2011-11-03T11:33:00.000-07:00

At what point do we teach youth about personal responsibility? Perhaps a better question is, when do we hold youth responsible for their personal actions?

It is the main purpose of the BSA to help guide personal growth in youth and that is by instilling in them values that the organization believes are excellent attributes that would make someone a good citizen. It is for that reason why the patrol method is fundamental in this organization. Every scout not only has responsibility for himself (such as being prepared for a campout, hike, etc.) but also has a position that brings along responsibility (Patrol Leader, Quartermaster, etc). The scout is provided the means and support to take on those responsibilities but the scout also has to take on the responsibility to be successful. If you don't get enough food for the campout, you go hungry. If you are not prepared for the weather you get wet, cold and miserable. If you don't get to the train, bus, plane on time.....you miss it. No one is to blame except...........yourself.

So why is it that we are seeing more and more overly paternalistic intrusions on this key method? Over the past few years I have received e-mails ranging from how we assure that the scouts are washing their hands and taking routine showers to, who cleans their campsite? At camp we see the adults go out and buy food for their scouts and cook it for them on their cookout day ("It is a treat the adults do once a year for the boys" I hear. My response is, "do it back home, not during a week long scout outing when you have a chance to employ the patrol method....in a BSA camp of all places"). I have had more than one remark that I should hire a cleaning crew to go around to each kybo and clean the floors, sinks and toilets each day to assure cleanliness. Really? Isn't "clean" a point on the scout law? Shouldn't the scouts be responsible for the mess they make? "We share a campsite and the other troop is a mess". Actually, that is true, however that is where adult supervision and leadership come into play.....you don't need the camp management fighting your battles unless of course it comes down to actual fighting when we send both of you home. Another comment is "the staff should set up and clean up after each meal so the boys have the ability to make it to merit badge classes on time." No, it is the responsibility for the patrol to share that task as much as it is in any family where members have certain jobs to do for the good of the group. All of these are what I consider "patrol business" not adults, not camp.

This paternalism is getting more prevalent as each season goes by. I can't tell you how many parents call on the phone and begin by saying "I can't believe you let.........." I will fill in some of the blanks for you; "...the scouts stay up so late"......." the scouts get away not eating their vegetables"...."......the scouts eat so much candy"......".....my son take 'X' merit badge". I could spend the whole day telling you what parents think we should or should not be doing. I have to remind them that they let their son join a specific troop and that troop selected a particular adult to oversee the on the ground operations of that troop. Perhaps their questions are best answered by those individuals. We supply a safe environment and a staff to do our best to assure a safe operation of that environment, everything else comes down to the troop leadership. You don't like to see scouts with untucked shirts and in flip-flops? Talk to the scoutmaster, it is his call, his leadership......if youth protection is being followed and the scouts adhere to the rules of the camp, well there is not much the management can or should do. Some may disagree with this but it is the parents of any given troop that select the adults they want in charge of their children, not Ken or myself. We will always make suggestions and give guidance to adult leaders and in some cases may even talk with the council commissioner if we think that a troop really is not following the scouting program, but we are not the "scouting police".

Parents and adults alike always must look out for the welfare of their children, of that there is no doubt. However, let the scouting program do its job; it is not in contrast to your concerns. No scout starves if they don't bring enough food for a weekend campout, but by God they will never make that mistake again. Being tired, wet and cold over a weekend will more than prepare anyone for future nights camping (I am not promoting hypothermia.....if they get wet and cold, we will take care of them). Bringing too much or too little, burning your food or dropping it into the fire are all surprisingly strong life lessons that can be applied to other things as one grows older.

You hear a lot of red jacketed scouting "pros" proudly say...."Scouting is a game with a purpose!!" You are absolutely right.....so don't take the purpose out.

Burn Baby Burn

2011-10-31T10:11:00.000-07:00

This weekend marked the end-of-the-line for one of our venerable structures, the office, err...program office, err....Trading Post, err....Staff lounge....and on and on and on.... The building that was situated on the west end of the Silver Marmot parade field is no longer. All of you have seen it, many of you have been in it and a number of you worked there through the years. Here it is in better times, just a few years after it was built in the 1920's:

When I first came on staff this structure was hardly used and was designated as a staff lounge. It was more of a storage area with a few couches in it and a TV that didn't really work. There was a ping pong table in there as well. Staff members seldom hung out there as it was far more comfortable to hang out in your tent or your friends tent. The following years however, ping pong became the favorite sport of staff members and that building had a new life. In those days there were no walls, just a few posts in the interior. In the area where my office once stood (on the south side of the building) a ping pong table could fit easily between the posts and the south wall of the building with enough room on each side to be able to maneuver. Old mattresses were put up on the walls on the south side as many times you would hit the wall as you went to return a volley. Then as we progressed into the 80's, the building became the program office. Again, there were no walls, just one open bay. The PD's desk was in the back center of the building in front of the old fireplace (the bookshelves are there now), with the Head Commissioner and other desks around the rest of the building. That structure also served as the AWP kitchen and dining hall for those off season months in the 80's. There was a huge stainless steel sink on the north side of building along with refrigerators, stoves, ovens, etc. To heat the building there was a cast iron stove that was situated were Ken's desk stood for years after. During the 90's, Bob Enzler decided to make the building a little more utilitarian as he required an office and we were renovating the Trading Post to enlarge its retail space, so he put up the wall between our "new" office and the program office and also built walls that formed the PD's office and back storeroom. That is the layout of the building that most people know today. We moved out of that building in 2010 when we completed the full renovation of the SMG and had new offices were the old Quartermaster's shack on the old back loading dock used to be located. Since 2010 the building has served as the temporary Trading Post (once again) until the new facility is built which is currently being completed.

So with a building that has more than 80 years of history into it, one might ask "why are you destroying it?" Well the simple answer is that we can......but the real reason is that the building was not salvageable given the amount of work and money that would be required to "save" it. In the winter time we used to "winterize" the windows the best we could so as to keep the building warm as we would work in there. However, on thsoe cold and windy days in January you could feel the wind come not only from around the window panes, but through the wood itself. The roof line was so distorted due to rot and termites that I am surprised a good wind storm never took it out. We had two good contractors try to work on the building (Ken and Bob) but everything was just temporizing. Simply put....the building had served out its purpose and needed to be replaced which is what we are doing. Like many other things at camp we modify things to meet the needs of the program. That building has been modified so many times that there really is nothing left other than memories. So it was time to move on:

It was a controlled burn that served as a training exercise for various fire departments from Mason and Jefferson counties. This will make way for an expanded parade field and a little widening of the current parking lot. Buildings come and go; if you go to the museum you will see that at one point in the 20's there were about 16 structures around the SMG. Some like the SMG will have historical significance, others like the dining hall and the old office had a more practical role as opposed to those that define the face of camp. That being said, this goes to show that ongoing maintenance is important in order for us to use our facilities to the maximum of their lives. Perhaps if more attention was given to the building throughout the earlier years it could have been easily upgraded and renovated. Now, we need to move on and do what is best for the program and the scouts that come and benefit from that program.

There was definitely a hot time, in the old town this weekend.......

Some Things Never Change.....

2011-10-28T11:29:00.000-07:00

During my melancholic post yesterday, I mentioned the fact that I can easily get lost when I am looking at pictures or stories in the museum which are decades old. As a matter of fact, I find time moves quickly when I do that; what seems like a few minutes is actually an hour. However last evening I came across something that supported my notion of what little changes through the years.....even if the years are decades.

I was rearranging a few thing on the bookshelf late last evening when I came upon a number of old staff annuals from the 80's. I knew I had these but I hadn't seen them in awhile and only stumbled over them while cleaning things up. The staff started developing a seasonal annual in the the mid-80's and it has been a staple of every season ever since. It has developed from a stapled, mimeograph copy to multi-colored, pictured productions. However that appears to be the only substantial change. By mistake I found myself reading through these old copies which essentially put an end to the night. There were the usual personal statements and living will & testaments which are focused mainly on the current staff. This was interesting because if you never knew the staff members of that particular era you would find that by reading some of this stuff, you probably would get a good idea of who they were (or at least what others perceived them to be). I came across one section and had to chuckle as the material there could have been easily written today. It was a section called "Don't You Hate it When......" and here are a few of the responses that would resonate with the staff of today:

Living in Upper Lena and being the Staff Guide for Ranger campsite.

Living in Upper Lena and being the Staff Guide for Rangers two weeks in a row.

Getting up early to wake up your troop in Rangers only to find that they are already awake.

Running to get your fire gear on during a drill and then running to the drill only to find out it is lost bather drill and you need to get wet.

You forget your uniform shirt for dinner and try to zip your jacket up far enough so that no one will notice.

A scout asks "What time is Wilderness Survival Merit Badge" during beach orientation.

You have to explain the merit badge requirements to scouts at least 20 times.

Mike stares at you disapprovingly or just ignores you altogether.

Walt (Camp Director) yells at the entire staff about the dirty staff kybos when it was your day to clean the kybo and you forgot.

These were all from the 80's but ring true today as most current staff members could connect with these statements.

Although there is a lot of continuity at camp, things do change. We have had various camp programs such as our beach bonanza which came into existence about ten years ago and will morph to something else in the future. Our closing ceremonies are shorter and earlier than they were twenty years ago. I still hear new songs and see new skits and I have yet to truly utter the words, "I've seen it all now." Staff experience remains about the same, but the staff is in constant renewal; keeping the best traditions of customer service and scouting skills from the past but bringing in new enthusiasm and excitement for the present. I guess that is the only time this saying is absolutely true, "old in years but young at heart."

Whispering Ghosts

2011-10-27T20:42:00.000-07:00

I have often commented on how alive camp is when the staff is in residence with a facility full of eager scouts and have compared that to the reverent-like silence that is as equally enjoyable during the off season. It surprises me sometimes, the stark contrast between the two that happens as quickly as when the last car leaves the parking lot. There are some things that add to it; the days are shorter during the off season and everything has a grey hue to it. At times when you walk around camp you have a hard time remembering the specific activities which occur in the different areas of camp. The campfire bowl seems so desolate, Met Jr. has an eerie quietness about it other than the whistling of the wind through the trees. The SMG and Dining Hall parade fields seem so empty and you have a hard time imagining a crowd ever forming around the Trading Post. The campsites are devoid of tents and it is hard to believe that 60 scouts would form around a currently empty and dark campfire ring and sing songs into the late hours of the evening. Yet despite this, there is something very calming about all of this.

When I am at camp by myself (and that is not during the work parties) I often enjoy just wandering around camp alone. I usually spend a lot of time in the museum as I know I will not be interrupted by staff, scouts or adults. I take my time going through all the pictures and try to imagine what thoughts were going through those scouts minds as well as the activities they were doing. I can't really see what has changed from those times until the present time just looking at those pictures.. When I walk out onto the pier I feel very alone, surrounded by only Jackson Cove. Gone are all the life guarding equipment, the blue barrels and lines, the float and all the boats that are usually anchored off of the pier. At high tide, with a little wind and wave action, you can feel the pier move slightly with the current. Although somewhat calming, it is also disturbing as it reminds me that the pier does not have much more life in it. As I walk through the trails all I can hear is the creak of the trees as they sway in the wind and the occasional "thump" of something falling off those trees (hopefully nowhere near me). Eventually I arrive at the dining hall, which is very barren and foreboding. It stands guard at the head of the main parade field with nothing to guard over except the occasional tide flow that comes up the drain grates.

I have always been mystified about the dining hall. During the winter it feels very cold and of course, it is very dark, even during the daytime. The other thing about the dining hall is that is very quiet, even during a storm in the dead of winter. Oh sure, there is some whistling (well a lot of whistling) through the gaps in the windows, doors, paneling, etc.....but really no "creaking" that one would think that a building that size would have. The dining hall is over 70 years old and has seen a lot of the camp come and go and we have discussed over and over again that it has seen better days. Still, there is something alluring about that dining hall with all those memories attached to it and at times I wonder if those memories still linger in some form.

There are several times that I have slept in the dining hall by myself in the dead of winter. There was no real good reason for me to do it..... it was something I just wanted to do. The few times I have done this the dining hall was empty; the tables were stacked in one corner of the hall and I would pull one of them out and place it just in front of the fire place (sans the fire). It would be important where you put the table as you do not want to place it under where the bats have a tendency to roost (or whatever). So I slept on top of a dining hall table, on a foam pad along with a sleeping bag and pillow. As the night would go on I could hear and partially see the bats zip right over my head as they cleared the dining hall of any flying insects and at times, you could hear the odd mouse (hopefully just a mouse) skitter around the floor. However, the one thing you could also hear were whispers. It wasn't the wind, it wasn't the bats, no, it was a distant whisper. I could never make out what was being said nor did I believe it was being said to me.....it was just a din above everything else.....almost like a babbling brook in the distance if you were sleeping outside. I would listen for awhile to see if it was something I could recognize....was it truly voices or was it something reflected from outside, like the trees or branches moving or maybe a distant vibration of some piece of the dining hall but before I could figure it out, it would be morning all of a sudden.

I have told this story to numerous staff members throughout the years; some are interested, some just roll their eyes (I train them well). I for one believe in an afterlife, but I don't believe in ghosts. I do believe that some inanimate objects can have a presence perhaps based on their attachment to history. I believe there are things that might be beyond my comprehension such as a fourth or even fifth dimension. However I do know what I experienced and what I heard and I wasn't fearful of what it could be. It may be "corny" but I do feel that the camp has a life of its own.......it certainly has a history of its own. When I am there, particularly by myself, I feel comfortable.....I feel at home. Maybe it is because I have a lot of unseen company in some way or form.

As for my whisperers in the dining hall, well I find it somewhat interesting that of all places in camp, that is where I would hear them. Then again, that is where we have the quote from Kipling's Explorer that has hung in the dining hall since the day camp started. It is a long poem which challenges one to look beyond what is here today. The poem's ending may be somewhat prophetic for me however........."Anybody might have found it, but.....his whisper came to me."

Stupid Is As Stupid Does

2011-10-26T10:41:00.000-07:00

I haven't had a chance to write anything for awhile as I was away at a professional conference brushing up on some new "stuff" and garnishing some required education credit. I find these national conferences comforting as you listen to the experts in your field tell of things that work and things that do not work and things that are around the corner; none of which is "new" to you as you have either heard or read about it previously. In other words it is good to know that you are up to speed. However through the years I have come to the conclusion that the more educated you are, the stupider you get.......at least in the areas of common sense or social skills. While sitting through an interesting lecture being given by an individual who is either the world expert in the subject at hand OR the one who actually invented or discovered a particular device or disease, here is what I observed. Despite the fact that there are hundreds of people with you in this auditorium, all of whom are interested in what this person has to say, you have these learned professionals who are your peers, that walk into the lecture late, allow the door to slam after them (only to have it open again in seconds for another learned professional) then walk in front of the speaker slowly while looking up at the audience, completely oblivious to the fact that the lecture has stopped and everyone is staring at them, to either find a seat or to find someone they were meeting there and then meander to that seat or wander around like a lost puppy and eventually decide to stand in front of somebody who actually got there on time. A cell phone goes off during the lecture and instead of quieting the device or walking out and taking the obviously very important phone call outside....they answer the phone like they were sitting in their own homes. How self centered, how rude. If someone came to their office and pulled any of these stunts, those particular individuals would be incensed. "How dare you treat me like that....don't you know who I am?", is what they would be thinking. However here, during this conference....no...the world revolves around them, they are the only ones that matter and they are so self-absorbed they don't even know it.

The other interesting observation is the post-lecture "dance." I am sure it is the same thing in almost every profession. Someone delivers a lecture or address or whatever and the first thing they say at the end of their delivery? C'mon, you all know it......."Are there any questions?" I would LOVE it if, as usual, the group of people who always have questions (and you all know those "type" of people) came up to the microphone only to have the moderator of the presentation say, "sit down folks, it was only a rhetorical question.....nobody cares what you have to ask. If it is that important, come up afterwards and ask your question." Unfortunately, that will never happen. What does happen follows like a dance lesson; there are steps that need to be followed to perform the dance correctly. The first step is that you ingratiate yourself to the speaker; "Oh Doctor "such and such" that was a wonderful lecture and I appreciate your passion to this subject and...blah, blah, blah." That usually takes about the first one to three minutes of their "question." The second step of the dance is to make sure that everyone knows of the particular and "unique" qualifications that makes the person asking the question feel on par with the presenter; "I am "such and such" and after having doing this particular thing for thirty years I have found in my vast experience that......". The final step in the dance is interesting.....the person asking the question actually never has a question....it is usually a statement that the presenter finds himself just commenting on and not answering an actual question. Now there is an add on here at times which I call the final dip; that is where after the presenter finishes his comments on the "question" (as there really is no answer as a question was never offered) the person that asked the "question" argues with that expert who is world renowned in his field of study. That final move sums up the character of the person asking the question....a dip.

It is frustrating that the vast majority of people in my profession are self-absorbed narcissists who although have good intentions cannot see beyond their own egos......and I get to be one of them. Maybe everyone in my profession should learn the scout law......it would help.

Meanwhile, back on the camp front, work continues on at the new Trading Post. A "special" work party was held this past weekend as the concrete was poured for the TP. Volunteers from Mowat Construction were on hand as were many of our stalwart AWP veterans. There was a little concrete left over so it was put to good use and a real basketball court was poured where the basket ball hoop is today. That should help for those errant rocks that send a ball off that will benefit an activity and we didn't even plan for it. Work continues on with the TP but it should be up and running fairly soon.

October Ruminations

2011-10-20T10:31:00.000-07:00

If you haven't heard already, Kathy (Enzler) gave birth last Saturday to a healthy baby boy. She was close to her due date; actually Bob and Carolyn were concerned because they were going to have to be someplace else on that particular due date but were able to be there with her. Of course the first picture they sent me of this beautiful newborn was one where he was wearing a WSU beanie.......isn't a little early to force gender roles on this poor child? Congratulations to Kathy and her husband and we will be looking forward to her son being on staff in about 15 years.....I should be retiring about then anyway.

Don't you hate when you find that the annoyances that you face are due exactly to your own actions? October has been a horrible month of work as the schedule just kept hammering me over and over. Of course, I am the one who makes the schedule. Do I really hate myself that much? Rhetorical question....no replies are needed.

I have said it many times before and I will probably say it many times in the future (hopefully)......I have an amazing staff. Every year I worry that the person I interview will hopefully be the same person who shows up in June and does what I think they can do. Although there are variations from year to year, the quality and caliber of these young men gets better and better as each season comes and goes. Over the past few years I have found myself chatting with some of these guys during the off season; sometimes at work parties, at tailgates or even the odd e-mail here and there, and I am constantly impressed with the variety of their talents and interests. This may be due to the fact that median age of the staff continues to advance, indeed we seem to have more 18 y/o first years than we do 16 y/o. I think this is also due to the fact that we have more current staff members participating in our monthly work parties than we have in previous years. In the past I have always encouraged my staff to earn their Eagle award; now it is worrying about whether they get into graduate school and usually it is not the "getting in" part but instead which school they get into.

The plumbing is done at the new Trading Post and concrete will be poured this week. This is major hurdle as from here on out it is basically putting the interior together which should move fairly quickly. This project may be done by February if not sooner. No further movement on the Dining Hall at the time of this writing other than waiting for final cost proposals and of course the finished design. I hope we are not running out of steam......but we may be running out of money that we have on hand. The most cynical side of me foresees a finished design and building specs as well as permits that will eventually be tacked on to the museum wall with the title "what could have been." The most optimistic side of me knows that we will have major donors that will step up and we will be welcoming scouts in late June of 2013 to a state of the art facility. Any bets either way?

National Camp School will be at Pigott this next summer. I tried to talk to a few people about bringing it to Parsons but old habits apparently die hard. "The waters too cold...." Bleh, it is warmer than Lake Hughes in June and we have access to a pool for the swimming part. "There's no COPE course...." Bleh again.....we have access to one in Chimacum and you don't use it every day anyway, that is why you plan. "It's too far away from the airport...." Double bleh on that one......anyone drive from SeaTac to Monroe on a weekday? I can drive to camp AND back by the time you do that (sure, a slight exaggeration, but it is far more enjoyable). We hosted NCS in 1987 and it was a hit. Chief Seattle should showcase ALL of its camps to those who attend. Maybe I can sell it once we have a new dining hall.

Do you know that we are about 3 months away from beginning interviews for the 2012 staff? The grid is already out and even has a few names on it, but most of it is still blank as it always is this time of year. We have a full camp of eager scouts already looking forward to a great week at camp.....we even have a number of scouts looking forward to a great week during the 2013 summer, and why not? They will have a new dining hall, right?

"Dinning" vs "Dining" Hall

2011-10-19T11:51:00.000-07:00

It has been rumoured that when Lord Baden-Powell visited Camp Parsons he said "Nice camp, except for that Dining Hall." At the time of his visit he would have been referring to Booth Hall which is now called the Silver Marmot Grill which was the original dining hall for camp. The reference here was that in his mind scouting was an outdoor activity and young men should be cooking in the outdoors, not eating inside. What better way to promote the patrol method than having this activity as part of it. I would say that BP probably didn't understand the Pacific Northwest weather but then again he came from Great Britain which has the same liquid sunshine that we have.

The Silver Marmot Grill, as it is known today, was the first building in camp with construction that began in May of 1919 and was pretty much completed by late June/early July of 1919. The building is pretty much the way you see it today except the actual kitchen was removed in the 1940's. The kitchen was where the current deck is now, behind the SMG (for you old timers, the old loading dock to the old Trading Post). You can see this easily on pictures in the museum. These two pictures posted here show you the old dining hall in use during the 20's and if you look just a little right of the American flag in the picture with the scouts eating, you will see a doorway and a window to the doorway's right (or left as you look at it). On the second picture you can see the same window and doorway that we uncovered during the re-model a couple of years ago. You can also see the Kipling quote in the old picture, the same one that is in the current dining hall. It is hard to know why our founders thought it important to have a dining hall, but I surmise that it was a practicality as resources were somewhat limited during that era as was a scout's time, particularly if the scouts of those days wanted to do all the activities at camp. However I personally believe the practicality was more than just that; it allowed one to schedule the program so that it ran smoothly. Remember, there were no troops that came to camp during those early years, only individuals. Once a scout came to camp he was placed into a section based on a combination of age, ability, rank and interest of activity. Given the diversity of programs that surrounded camp as well as making sure the boys got 3 squares a day probably made the decision for a dining hall that much easier.

As camp grew, so did the need for a bigger dining hall. Camp Meany was founded in 1938, built as a memorial to Professor Edmund Meany, the first Scout Commissioner for the new Seattle Area Council and father of an Eagle Scout and CP staff member. Fundraising was held throughout Seattle after his death with the specific intention of building a Cub Scout camp. We have seen the initial plans for that camp and you would be surprised to learn that there was a pier that was planned to be constructed off of Mystery Beach. Resident camping for Cub Scouting went away in 1942 and CP expanded into the old Camp Meany site and took over its much larger dining hall.........the same dining hall we use today (albeit with some renovations and modifications). So here we are.......in a building that is 73 years old, built on pilings and still leaning towards the canal. That building alone is much older than any other camp OR property in the Chief Seattle Council, or most camps through out the United States.

So I find it amusing when I hear through second and third hand reports that there are some folks within our council that question whether or not we should be looking at spending the $5 million approved for the construction of a new, state of the art dining hall when that money could be going to numerous programs throughout the council. Seriously? What other Boy Scout program allows a troop with its brand new tenderfoot through its crusty old Eagle Scouts come and camp together for a full week and operate as a troop without "outside" interference? By "outside" I mean the general public as opposed to camp where everything is directed to the aims and methods of the scouting program without any other distraction. What "program" generates a revenue that not only covers the operational cost of the program but brings revenue in to the council to support other non-revenue producing "programs." I put quotations on the word program because many of these activities have absolutely nothing to do with what scouting is supposed to be (if we are to follow the mission, aims and methods of scouting). Thanks to a generous donor, hundreds of thousands of dollars have been spent on another Chief Seattle facility which has made it one of the most modern camps in the Western Region and has countless activities which scouts can avail themselves of. There is money being spent on another facility which has been built on property that we don't even own. Someone wants to question an investment into a camp that has consistently proved its success?

Our architect mistakenly titled one of the floor plans "The Camp Parsons Dinning Hall" misspelling dining. That may have been a Freudian slip as the definition of Dinning is "a jumble of loud, usually discordant sounds." Hmmmm......sound familiar?

The dining hall at CP is an important part of our program. Although I agree that there is a lot to be said about patrol cooking as an important aspect of the patrol method, it is a method that can be practiced anytime during the other 51 weeks of ones scouting year. The dining hall allows us to demonstrate and practice parts of the scout law; trustworthy, friendly, courteous, obedient, thrifty, clean and reverent. Sharing a meal with others in some cultures is a very intimate affair. At camp we dine "family style". We all sit down together and share the food on the table. The scouts must clean their hands before meals, there is a non-denominational prayer giving thanks to the food before us, the scouts must be courteous and share the food amongst themselves and be trustworthy and obedient to take the portions allotted to them and thrifty not to waste food by taking more than they need. There is much to be learned here even while performing the simple task of eating. Beyond that, there is something ethereal about 500 plus individuals sitting down to eat and then singing at the end of the meal. These are where memories are made in an eleven year olds mind.

We need a year round facility so as to put camp to work year round. The dining hall can be used to support scout training programs, events and work parties. It can be used for other not-for-profits and generate an income that will support its operation as well as be a revenue source to fund other "programs" in the council. It is a facility whose time has come to be built.

The Scout Executive and the Executive Board are behind this project one hundred percent as are almost all the Scoutmasters and adults I talked with this past year who set foot in Camp Parsons. I hope those second and third hand reports that I heard were nothing more than just that.... "talk"........or should I say "dinning"?

The Best Kept Secret?

2011-10-18T12:34:00.000-07:00

Since I had to work last evening, I took some down time to go over some of our recent attendance numbers to see if there are any trends that I could pick up over the past few years. For the most part, our attendance remains very flat and if anything, showing a very slight decline over the past two years. That really does not mean much as we are limited by campsite space and dining hall capacity and out of the two it is the former rather than the latter which is the issue given our current circumstances. The variability comes really with the size of a troop that attends and the campsite it takes. For example, a 20 person troop may be able to fit another 4 scouts into their campsite. Since you don't really have a troop of 4 (well sometimes you do) then those spaces go unused. These limitation are the reason why we fill so quickly as we really have no way to easily expand our campsite capacity currently and if we did, then the dining hall will become the real limiting factor. There are pros and cons behind this; a con is that you limit accessibility as well as income however the pro leans more towards quality. At what point do you get so big that you start losing some of the "magic" or personality of the camp? I think we can probably add two if not three more large campsites without affecting the caliber of the program and experience for the scout and certainly the new dining hall can accommodate that change and then some.

One of the other things I noticed is that 47% of scouts attending Camp Parsons during the past season are from out-of-council. That is a significant amount, particularly when you factor in that each scout had to pay substantially more than scouts from Chief Seattle Council to attend. That is much more than the 18% of Camp Pigott's scouts that were from out-of-council. So I have to ask myself, are the out-of-council troops better organized and get their reservations in before Chief Seattle troops, is it because what we offer is much better than what their camps have or is it because many troops in the council don't know what they have in their backyard? I am sure it is a combination of many things; from those listed above to other particular drivers...but it does beg the question of where, if anywhere, do troops go. I know from anecdotal experience, there are several troops that will never attend a Chief Seattle camp. I am sure that there are a variety of reasons why this occurs; from disliking the offerings we have to wanting their scouts to have an "experience" and leave the council for an adventure. Regardless, it seems to me that we should be hosting more Seattle troops.

Now, I have discussed this before and I have had people tell me that many troops in Seattle do not get organized for summer camp until the late winter/early spring and have suggested to me that we limit out-of-council troops to a certain number so as to support our own troops here within the council. Although I can sympathize with that sentiment I would be hard pressed to support it. We provide a product to scouts...ALL scouts regardless of where they come from. The vast majority of our income is derived from the camp fees paid by our attendees as well as ancillaries like those found in Trading Post sales. Income from camp is also derived in rentals, resource sells (like select logging cuts) and other items. It is not supported by membership fees to the Seattle council. Granted that membership within the council does generate donations and helps in fund raising and although that does directly affect all of our properties, the simple fact is that we cannot go without our facilities being full each season if we are going to afford to offer the opportunity to have those facilities, let alone staffing them with quality young men and women.

I can understand those troops that like to rotate around camp experiences each year; that is to say this camp one year, another the next, etc. What I am amused about when I hear "we always look forward to coming back to Camp Parsons after our last couple of summers." Well, we don't change much, the quality we have is the same when you left as it is when you come back (unless you just don't like what we offer) so why go some place else where you don't know what you are going to get (this is a rhetorical question....please don't e-mail with your response as I know there are other reasons)? To those troops who do not attend summer camp or those who will not go to Camp Pigott or Parsons then I would emphatically say to those respective troop committee chairs this.....you need new adult leadership.

The Seattle council is steeped in history and tradition and its properties and various programs reflect that history. Camp Parsons was founded by individuals whose names are on school buildings, universities, mountains, trails and literature across the Pacific Northwest. Scouts are actually part of that history each year they attend as they jump of the pier, swim on central beach or go to a campfire or maybe take a hike. No one should keep this a secret.

Popcorn

2011-10-17T11:14:00.000-07:00

Once again we made our way back to Husky stadium this weekend to watch UW beat Colorado. The weather was perfect football weather though it was a bit cold as we got to the parking lot in the wee hours of the morning. When I went out to the car earlier that morning I thought things would warm up as the day went on, but after an hour in the parking lot, it actually felt like the temperature dropped. Good thing for some of my staff that I was prepared with extra jackets as several of them came dressed like it was summer. Meredith did a fantastic seafood pasta that made up for the cold weather and Steve and Amy along with their friends supplied the rest. It was a good pre-game feast.

One of the "draw backs" of having a CP tailgate is that you become the target of any roaming scout who is out to sell whatever it is they have to sell to raise money for their troop or for going to summer camp. Currently, we are right in the middle of popcorn season, where troops are out there selling popcorn to raise money for their activities. From my understanding, this is a great fundraiser not only for the scouts and their respective troops, but also for the council. The popcorn might be a little overpriced, but it is actually quite good. Every year I wind up buying some from local scouts (I get caught coming out of the store and they have their table RIGHT there) and take it to my office where it promptly disappears. Of course, during tailgates there are bands of "wild" scouts AND cub scouts wandering around hocking their wares. This past weekend was no different, the only annoyance was that most of the people attending the tailgate went out of their way to call these scouts over and direct them to me. "He will buy something from you....." was a common statement. After having dropped a fair amount of cash on the BSA in the past two weeks for two separate events, I was planning on laying low, licking my wounds and trying to re-build my capital. So I followed an old adage and invoked "just say no". I think I went through 3 or 4 waves of this until people figured out I was serious. I felt bad for one cub scout as different people kept bringing him over to me; "you again......" was the only thing I got out......I think I scared him away. Oh well, I scout should be brave.

Damn popcorn.

It was a relaxing weekend for the most part, of course helped on by a large Husky win. I had the chance to talk to a few people I haven't seen in awhile and didn't feel rushed at all. Greg Batie was at the game, but we didn't talk much about the dining hall......he, Gary and Ken had gone to look at a dining hall facility this past week that had the same radiant concrete floor that we are looking at for our dining hall and from what he tells me, it looks good. We are still waiting for the cost estimates on a few key items before we can move forward but hopefully they will be available soon. I overhead a discussion amongst a few people who had been at some council event recently who mentioned that "someone" asked the question about whether or not CP really needed to have a new dining hall given the financial challenges we have raising money for certain projects. If that question ever did come up, I would have loved to have been at the table in order to answer it.

Camp Parsons and High Tech

2011-10-14T12:30:00.000-07:00

I mentioned several posts ago about the steady progress of technology through the seasons at Camp beginning with paper and pen, manual typewriters, mimeograph machines and the such. Now we work off a wireless net and share files and a common printer. The Scoutmaster meeting is done by powerpoint and we print off a very concise daily program to hand out to our directors. With the use of our computers we can now update things without causing too much consternation. Though looking at our progress to date it begs the question of what we will have tomorrow.

Every couple of weeks I get e-mails from a variety of businesses that develop electronic summer camp management. Many of you Scoutmasters are aware of the variety of different electronic records that are out there to help you manage your troop, advancement, etc. We get pitched numerous things; from on-line camp reservations, to employee tracking software to on-line registration for merit badges. All very neat....all very fancy.....but are all really necessary? Moving to a paperless work place is a good goal to achieve, but it needs to be done in an economical and common sense way. We are always asked whether or not we have on-line registration for merit badges. Currently we do not; partly this is due to the fact that we do not have the resource or infrastructure to do that and partly due to the fact that it really isn't that beneficial to us as a whole. Now I know that many Scoutmasters will disagree but since we never fill up a class, it adds cost to us without value. It may be worthwhile for an adult leader to have a manageable list of who is doing what, but you can have that without having to register with us, indeed you can print off a registration list and give it to us so that the instructors can put those names on their list. The only benefit that I can see for us is that we have legible names on a list along with troop numbers, but that will only be from the troops that would take advantage of this opportunity (and those make up the minority). I would rather have our staff bring laptops and make digital records of their classes rather than writing them down on a triplicate form......but having 40 laptops really isn't what we want. As a matter of fact, I really don't like our staff having any type of electronics when working...too distracting. Finally, I can tell you that in our experience almost 20% of scouts who sign up for a merit badge change within the first day.....so not sure how pre-registration works there. We have also found that it is beneficial for the instructor to actually see and talke with the scout when he signs up for a particularly challenging merit badge as the scout may not have the ability to even take on the merit badge, again something else that cannot be feted on pre-registration.

What I would rather see is requiring ALL troops to submit their troop's camp attendance roster in digital form to the scout office a week prior to their arrival at camp. If for some reason they fail to do that, then I would have a computer in the office for them to enter their scout's name on a digital roster. Why? Try going through the troop rosters in October and figure out some chicken scratch of a name and address when you have to verify someone being at camp or needing a replacement of advancement. Having this would be efficient, neat, manageable and lasting. I would go even further and have health forms be electronic, however that brings up so many privacy issues that we will never go there.

I am all for the efficiency that high tech opportunities have and will bring for us, but resources (ie: money) are not always readily available and we need to be very good stewards of our resources and focus them on what makes the most difference for the scouts and the smooth running of the camp. Pre-registration is nice, but I really would rather spend that money elsewhere currently such as equipment, material and yes....a new dining hall. Electronic troop rosters? Yes, that would be a help in managing the business of the camp (ie: income) and facilitate other mandates such as youth protection (where you should be able to track youth protection training).

I am all for innovation, and maybe I can be convinced that on-line registration is integral to the program.....to me what is integral to the program is the personal interaction between the staff as teachers and the scouts learning a skill and a software program can never achieve that.

The Store

2011-10-12T14:04:00.000-07:00

Call it what you want; The Trading Post, The Quartermaster Store, The Camp Store, The Canteen, The Ole Hitching Post, whatever........it is still the mecca for scouts who come to Camp Parsons. Given the wild and wet winter last season and the fact that Ken does not have a Ranger working for him currently, the construction of this facility has taken some time as we have been dependent on the expertise of our professional construction folks who volunteer their time for the Adult Work Party. Here are a few pictures sent to me from Greg Hammond showing the sided and roofed Trading Post. Still a lot more work to go but we have made great progress these past few weeks with the AWP as well as several former staff member like Ben Brown as well as Greg sticking around a few days after the AWP to help out Ken.

The Trading Post (as we call it) is an integral part of camp. Although it really has nothing to do with the mission and methods of the BSA it is a source of distraction, pleasant aperitifs, merit badge material and apparel for scouts and adults alike. However for us, it is an income source to help fund the facility as well as the program. Some people get uncomfortable talking about having a facility where the main goal is making a margin but the reality of the fact is that if you have no margin then you cannot fund the mission. The reality past that is that we need a place to sell material that scouts may need for the program. We offer camp apparel and patches which are souvenirs for them to take home and of course we offer items such as candy, pop and other food items. Like with most everything else we do, we get criticism about this facility as well.

The complaints we get, or should I say "suggestions" boil down to two things; the adults want more apparel items (shirts, buckles, patches, etc.) and the adults want more "health" food for the scouts and less candy, ice cream and pop. The former I agree with, we want to develop a line of apparel that is appealing and people would want to purchase. The art in this is that we do not wish to be left with a large inventory over the winter time. Yes, I know there are ways to mitigate this, but it is really an issue that can erode into our margin which we must be careful of. That being said, with this new facility we can operate it year round meaning that if a troop comes up, there will be opportunities to purchase belt buckles, patches, etc (probably not food though). The latter is a subject that we are sensitive to. Throughout most of the 80's and part of the 90's we really tried to limit the processed food and sweets we offered for retail and keep the offerings healthy. We didn't make much money and scouts just enticed their adults to go down the road and purchase candy and other things at the local store. So now, we run a supply/demand type system; we know what the demand is and we supply it (within reason). If the adult leadership of a troop feels strongly about not allowing sweets in camp (and I can understand why with some kids) they can post an adult at the door and turn their scouts away. The good thing is that the vast majority of scouts are very active that the calories they take in are usually burned away by the end of the day.....but there are always those few scouts who just don't need those extra calories.

Then there is that one adult who accused me of intentionally making the dining hall food so bad to force scouts to spend money at the Trading Post. It is sad that some people come to camp off their psychiatric medications....

For those of you who have not been to camp recently, the new Trading Post is right next to the SMG (you can see it in the pictures above) adjacent to the parking lot. The old Trading Post, which was the old Program Office, which was the old staff lounge, which was the old Trading Post.....wait a minute....do all things come back to what they were before? The old building will be coming down before the termites and ants bring it down for us. This will give us a chance to open up the parade field a little bit as well as widen the parking lot to make parking a little more comfortable. For those of you who think this is a big change...no it's not. Just go to the museum and see the number of structures in this area in the 20's and 30's....camp is always in evolution.

I am looking forward to this new year-round facility. It should not only enhance the service we provide to the scouts that come, it will enhance our revenue stream that allows to provide an outstanding experience for our scouts. Now if only I could develop a real Scoutmaster "Lounge".....oh the income we could make.

Passing Time

2011-10-11T10:56:00.000-07:00

Ugh...this has been a long "week" (defined as 12 continuous days) and I have a lot more to do before the weekend. As I sat in my office and stared at the wall trying to decide which of the dozens of things I need to do first, I found myself looking past a dozen or so camp staff annual pictures which lined the top of my bookshelf. As it was an easy distraction, I got up and started looking at some of the annual pictures from 1997 to the present day. I found it very interesting looking at pictures of young staff members the summer they first came on staff and then the sequential years that followed; some of which were on staff six, seven or ten plus years. You can see the changes from year to year as they grow and in some cases even watch the hairline recede (heh, heh). Only a few of us do not change in any of the photos.

One can become very melancholic looking at a staff member whom you hired as a sophomore in High School and now has long since graduated from college (or in some cases graduate school) and have careers, families and again, in some cases, children. Of course many years ago I bemoaned the fact that I had the sons of guys I used to work with now working for me. Some are old enough to enjoy an adult beverage with me. The coup de grace for me is to have been the best man for a friend of mine and then later for his son when he gets married......oh, I have hope. Regardless, looking at these guys during the carefree days of their lives when compared to now really brought home how quickly time does pass by. When I walk through the museum at camp I see rows and rows of pictures of scouts at central beach, on the pier, at the dining hall doing things that scouts do today. I don't think any of them ever had the thought that the time they had on the canal would ever end, yet knowing that these pictures are from the 1920s you realize that most of these healthy, active teens are all probably deceased now. I don't mean to depress anyone; instead I find it a reminder to grab on to the time we have and make the most of it.......Carpe diem, right?

While looking at the staff pictures, there are also a handful of people that I have no idea who they are. There they are, sitting with me in uniform with a staff jacket on, a few with Timberlines around their necks....and I cannot recall their name, what they did or anything at all for that matter. I wonder to myself if their time on the canal meant anything to them. Was it a key point in their teenage life or just something of a passing as much as playing on a JV team in High School. Of course, there are a few faces (and I mean few) that I am very happy not to see again. Somethings either have no place or do not need to be at Camp Parsons.........that of course, is my opinion.

Then there are other faces I see that I fondly remember as they were good staff members but only served a year or two at camp and then disappeared into the "mist". I often wonder what became of their lives as I have no doubt they were successful in whatever endeavour they undertook. I hope some day they come back to visit, at least before I leave.

After wasting about 45 minutes of mindless thought, I realized I still had those dozen things to do before my time no longer became mine to control until tonight, or the way the day is going, tommorrow morning. I better carpe some diem and get work done.

Walking On Egg Shells

2011-10-09T10:48:00.000-07:00

"You were talking about me.....right?"

That is the usual inquiry I get from some of my staff or even Scoutmasters who read my blog. I will go on a rant about some particular topic and several people who read this drivel on a regular basis can probably relate it to an incident they had at camp at some time. Unfortunately, that's not really the case as I do my best to focus on the core of my message and not an actual event (as there would be several, if not more, that would surround a particular topic....not just one.)

Most of the fodder for my blog comes from personal observations of events whether they be local, regional or national. It also comes from observations and interactions during events of which I participate in or have the opportunity to personally observe. A good part of the time it comes from an issue or point that someone makes either during a group discussion or a "complaint" or someone else's ruminations or thoughts. When any of these things trigger a topic for me I try to focus on the topic itself rather than the individual or situation which brought it to the forefront.

One of the most difficult things about writing this blog as much as I do is to stay centered on whatever topic I am on and not get sidelined by something personal. I also do not wish to embarrass anyone by mentioning them by name as again, that is not the purpose of what I want this "soap box" to be. The focus of the message is "on" the message, not the person. There are situations and people that really.....and I mean REALLY annoy me. This could be anything from the stupidity of some people driving on the road, idiotic pranks that my staff or other scouts may play, the lack of understanding the purpose of what the scouting program is about, rude adults and on and on..... People (including...gasp..myself) are flawed. We all make mistakes and hopefully learn from them and move on. Mistakes are one way of learning; as an aside, that is one of the great things about being employed at Camp Parsons as a youth....your mistakes will never follow you into the "real" world. In other words, you have the chance to hone your talents in a fairly risk-free environment......well risk free as long as you don't screw up big time. There is nothing wrong with making mistakes as long as you don't keep repeating the same mistake.

I started this blog when we first started our own website and only because I was cajoled by some of my staff to do so. I had only meant for it to be during the summer months as basically I wrote about what was going on at camp and what our future plans were going to be. I got talked into continuing it during the off season and initially I wasn't sure what I would have to ramble on about. I quickly found that there are things involving scouting and Camp Parsons on a weekly basis. Of course, this is not of great interest to most people, but it is to those who want to read it.

So I seldom mention names or particular events unless I wish to celebrate an individuals achievement (such as Eagle Scout) or sadly celebrate their lives when death inevitably comes. When I "rant", I painfully go through writing and re-writing to keep the topic on point and not stray to an individual or a group of individuals. Sometimes I clean it up so much that I get asked, "what happened to make you comment on that recent topic?" It really is like walking on egg shells.....but then again, if you want to make a great omelet, you need to break a shell or two every now and then.

A La Carte Scouting

2011-10-07T14:03:00.000-07:00

This past week I overheard as well as participated in numerous discussions and opinions about the future of scouting and what it should mean. This was based on Alvin Townley's take from interviews with well known leaders across the United States and partly on the presentation given by the Scoutreach team which presented the revised program to the group who attended the sadistic event I was at a few days ago. I enjoyed the enthusiasm that was apparent in all the speakers but also was concerned about certain ideas that popped up on later "sidebar" conversations based on some of these talks.

It is no secret that membership is one of the key goals for the professional scouts but it is also important to the volunteers who believe strongly in this program and want as many youth to participate in this as possible. The Boy Scouts have long since expanded from the basics of this program found in traditional scouting and over the years have added on Cub Scouting, Exploring, Tiger Cubs, Learning for Life and now the movement to attract youth at risk through the Scoutreach program. Within the Scoutreach program is Soccer in Scouting; Incarcerated Mothers (where children can interact with their imprisoned mother with supervision) and inner city Scouting. The two young professionals that talked of this program emphasized that the program(s) have been realigned so that the values of scouting as well as the leadership aspects are the main focus. In other words, who ever participates in this program will also participate in many aspects of traditional scouting. I think that is a good goal......a challenging one no doubt, but one that needs to be tackled. The discussion that ensued was engaging and at some points, a little worrisome for me.

Many groups have looked upon scouting as a great program for their respective groups; some of these are religious groups other are school or social groups. Unfortunately (through my experience) many groups try to "adjust" or fashion the program to suit their needs and in my opinion, the purpose of the program with these groups becomes blurred. The BSA has a mission which consists of three aims. There are values attached to those aims and a method by which we will achieve those aims. We don't look at the Scout Law and say; "well I will take the trustworthy, loyal and helpful aspects but I am not too keen on the reverent one...." No, these are the values which define our organization and what we feel are key to help making a better citizen. The same goes for the methods we employ........we don't pick and choose, we use them all. The Scouting program is not menu of possibilities, it is the way our organization does things. So in my humble opinion, either you are all in or you might as well be all out.

I never liked the Soccer in Scouting program in the past so I am glad to find now that it is something secondary to the attempt to immerse these youth in traditional scouting......it is being aligned to the aims and methods of the BSA which I believe will help those kids more as life goes on. The key however, to this program is having strong adult leaders. Not only that but it has to be the right leaders, not just someone you toss in to get the job done. Too many times at camp I have seen the "dad" or the "mom" who got stuck being Scoutmaster for the week at camp. As the old research adage goes...garbage in; garbage out....applies to almost anything in life. You need to have an enthusiastic and trained (or at least open to training) adult that will make the program worthwhile to those scouts who attend.

Membership is important but it can never trump the mission. Scouting can be adapted to numerous social settings but it cannot be modified to fit what someone thinks it SHOULD be.....if this is important to some people then there are plenty of youth organizations out there that may fit what YOU want. When you join a club, you understand the rules and if they don't fit what you need then go find another that does. We don't choose one method over another. Advancement serves a purpose but it is not the here all and end all of the scouting program. Earning and being awarded the Eagle Scout rank is worthless if the other methods are cast aside.....having a gazillion merit badges does not make you a leader......leadership roles and adherence to the values of scouting does.

This core part of the mission is framed nicely in a single quote by BP himself, "Scouting is a program of action done in the outdoors by patrols." It is as simple as that. I should have said something during some of these discussions, but who am I amongst these captains of industry........I am just a simple Boy Scout.

....and The Agony of Defeat!

2011-10-06T11:41:00.000-07:00

I don't know why I bother going on these "campouts" as all they do is drive me back to the level of competitiveness I had many, many years ago and thankfully had put behind me to be more of a team player. I zipped into camp in the early hours of the morning and then went down with Ken and the crew to pick up the rest of the patrol members who flew in from Seattle. It was actually pretty neat......you could first hear the engines then out of the low level clouds/mist you could see two alternating flashing lights on the wings of the two Otters as they came into Dabob Bay. They made one pass and then landed at the Shellfish Laboratory and deposited the crews on the beach. We got everything loaded up and made the quick jaunt back to camp (there was a bit of a south wind that day, that is why we were up at the lab).

This year I had two new patrol members; one is a nationally known author who speaks quite a bit on the scouting circuit and the other was the President of Alaska Airlines. Unfortunately, they did not help quell my competitive inclinations. The competition was well planned this year mainly because it was a secret....no one really knew what the events were (even myself, though I did get a few hints). This is important as some of the participants would find some way to "game" the system.....in other words, cheat. The competition was in the same fashion as the reality show, "The Amazing Race" where we would get a clue that would send us to a part of camp to perform a task upon which we would receive another clue to take us to the next event. After three or four events we came to a "pit-stop". The patrol that came in first would then have a 60 second head start ahead of the others and so on. I did like this format...HOWEVER...here is how it went. We started at the Silver Marmot Grill and had to run to the Tower, then to the Dining Hall, then to the Pier, then to the Dining Hall, then to the Pier, then to the Rifle Range, then to the Pier, then to Met Jr. then the Pier, then to the SMG field, then to the Dining Hall........are you getting the picture? After the third event "running" was a relative term. We are not talking about a bunch of young scouts here, we are talking about a lot of people like me. Of course, my two new patrol members are marathon-running-types which didn't really help myself or my other patrol member. At least now I have had my yearly cardiac stress test and by all accounts......I am doing OK. The other problem was that there was no real benefit or score for coming in first in each segment. My patrol was first or second in every competition except for the last one when we stumbled and lost the entire battle. I guess this is much like the Amazing Race where you can come in first in each leg, but still lose the race at the end of the day. Oh well, it wasn't that bad of a day even though it rained quite a bit. Thanks to Jim Britt, Andy Briggs, Keith Ingebrigtson and Gary Smith for helping out during the day. After the competition was over we packed everyone into vans and off to Alderbrook went the main group. I stuck around for awhile and talked with Ken and Keith if for no other reason than to let the burning in my legs die down.

The following day I awoke to very painful legs reminding me that it probably would have been a good idea to stretch and also that being well hydrated is a key component in keeping those pesky cramps away. I spent a good portion of the day swimming and then sitting in the hot tub.......I felt so much better after that. John Moen came by that evening and put on a campfire that...well...only John could do. The guys had a great time and it was probably one of the best Condit Campout Campfires we have had that I can remember.

All in all it was a productive couple of days. I was able to take the group on a tour of the museum and was a little surprised how many people didn't know who Reginald Parsons was or how scouting came to the Pacific Northwest. Then again, this is more of my hobby than any of the guys who were there. They were impressed with the history and tenure of camp and could relate to the hundreds of pictures showing smiling scouts as they enjoyed their week at camp. During lunch I was able to put a pitch in for the new Dining Hall and maybe....just maybe created a spark that will eventually develop into a fire.....we will see.

For now, back to work while massaging my poor legs as well as my ego.......

Into the Fall......

2011-10-03T12:51:00.000-07:00

Grey skies have become the mainstay at Camp Parsons these past few weeks as we slowly slip into the winter months. It was an enjoyable Indian Summer that we had this past month but now the wind and appropriate temperature have returned. However for the next few days CP will be hosting part of the Condit Campout which should be enjoyable. As I had to take most of last week off to attend meetings my schedule is very tight for this event. Instead of joining the rest of the crew on their trip to camp, I will have to escape work in the wee hours of the morning, participate for a day or two and then get back to work prior to the end of the event. Given my current schedule I am glad it is being held on the Hood Canal as I would not have been able to travel anywhere else if they had decided on a different location. It will be nice to have the home field advantage.....at least it will keep the cheating of the other patrols to a minimum.

I feel like I am living out of my car. The past week I was in Central Oregon attending meetings, then drove up to Seattle this past weekend for the BSA auction and tomorrow I will be driving up to camp. What is the use of unpacking? The auction was fun and it was good to see a lot of people attend that fundraiser. Unfortunately, I spent way too much money but at least I have most of my Christmas shopping done now. One of the items I picked up (by mistake) was a "free" bowl of Ivar's Clam Chowder each week for a year. With my "donation" it really isn't "free" but I suppose it is all for a good cause. It was hard trying to carry on conversations with folks at the silent auction part of the evening while watching the Husky/Utah game on my phone. It was a solid win and for the first time I feel comfortable that we have a good team to build on. There are some hard games ahead of us, but we are off to a pretty good start.

I said I would post more on Bob Lamm when I had more information. Bob was hired by the Chief Seattle Council in 1947 as a Field Scout Executive (I think that was akin to our District Executives of today) and worked at Camp Parsons starting then through 1958 when he became the Assistant Scout Executive for Seattle. From there he went on to be the Scout Executive of the Blue Mountain Council (where I did my Woodbadge training in the late 70's) starting in 1964. After that posting he had several different Area positions across the BSA with his final job as Director of Programming of the Western Region in 1978 retiring in 1985. After that, Bob and his wife settled down in Sequim where he remained until his passing a month ago. I had the opportunity to work with Bob on a couple of NCS staff and he never had anything nice to say about Camp Parsons and he would never elaborate on why when I asked him. He particularly did not like singing after meals and using hand motions to lead songs were just ridiculous. I don't mean to disparage him but that was my personal take on the interactions we had......I must admit, I was somewhat disappointed. However, he must have had a fondness for camp as he spent a lot of time working the summers; met his wife who was the diabetic nurse that took care of the diabetic scouts in Banting Lodge and continued to visit camp even after retirement. From talking with staff members of that era, he was a good leader and a good scout. It was also my understanding that he did not get along with some of the other CP alumni who had worked prior to his arrival.....though I could be wrong. We have a tendency to believe that everyone who works at camp gets along with one another and I think if you spent time working up here you find that personalities can rub the wrong way, particularly after nine weeks of living together. In any event, Bob spent a good portion of his life on the Hood Canal, benefitted the camp and its program and we certainly hope that he can rest in peace knowing that his good work continues on today.

Well it is going to be busy this upcoming week....a trip up the canal and back again and working through the weekend right up to the Colorado game the following weekend. Oh well, I have to make money to pay off all these "extravagant" purchases I made at the auction, after all, nothing is free.

Of Huskies and Dining Halls

2011-09-27T23:09:00.000-07:00

It has been awhile since I last put up a post, but things have been busy. After a hectic week I had to plan to attend a Dining Hall Kitchen design meeting last Friday. Since I had to be in Portland the evening before and also had to return that Sunday for meetings the following week, I had to take the Horizon shuttle up to Seattle. I knew it was a good omen when the plane I boarded was the UW themed Q400 aircraft. I got to the Scout Office on time but the meeting had been moved up about an hour (oh sure, I was told it was to facilitate Ken's schedule....but) and got up to speed. The meeting was fairly uneventful and I was pretty happy with the direction we are heading and looking forward to seeing some of the "state-of-the-art" equipment that we may pick up. We continued the meeting throughout the afternoon but by that time we were elsewhere.....it was nice to get outside on that warm Friday afternoon.

The following morning we were once again staking out our piece of land at E-1 for the usual Husky tailgate. Meredith had planned out a wonderful Mexican style buffet that lasted through the entire morning and post game events. We had the usual crowd show up and several of our staff members as well. The weather was fantastic and it was a very relaxing and enjoyable tailgate. The game however, was not that relaxing or enjoyable even though we won. It certainly was a "nail biter" but I am tired of having games come down to the last minute, particularly given the fact that if the defense had done their job (in my opinion) they wouldn't have had to "save the day" as the Times reported on Sunday morning. They have talent, but they need to develop it more. Regardless, the win helped make the afternoon that more pleasant knowing that we entered the Pac-12 season on the right track. It was a quick Sunday morning and then I was back in Portland ready for a week of meetings.

Meanwhile, back at the camp.....CP hosted the Venturing Rendezvous Friday evening through Sunday morning. According to Ken, things went well and I think the Venturers enjoyed their weekend. Of course, today I received two e-mails about lost and found. Even after 72 hours, things go missing.

So now, here I am in Central Oregon attending meetings from 7 AM through 5 PM listening to people talk....and that it what they do.....talk. I could go on but that would lead into a rant that has nothing to do with camp so I will save you the pain of which I must endure.

At least it is sunny here.

C'mon and Sign Right Up!

2011-09-22T15:42:00.000-07:00

We have completely filled the last week of August now and only have a few slots left for the first two weeks of the 2012 season. Your best bet for a choice of campsites is, as usual, the 4th of July week. That week has traditionally been the one which is the last to fill and usually the "smallest" of all our weeks. Now despite the fact that we are technically full, we do have slots open up as we get closer to summer camp. If you have a relatively small sized troop, say around 12 scouts and 2 (two) adults, there is a good chance something will open as we come to the fee deadline time. This is when most troops usually shrink about 2-4 scouts than they signed up for. Then again, we sometimes "overbook" knowing that is going to happen. Unlike an airline, I am not sure how we would handle it if everyone and then some past that, show up. Oh well, adapt, improvise and overcome.

For all you "hard core" Camp Parsons troops, you need to be looking towards 2013. Many troops that come to CP have it as part of their rotation; they come here, Merriwether, Baldwin, Fire Mountain, Pigott, etc. which certainly has its benefits by exposing their scouts to different locations and programs. However I often wonder if the scouts really care......usually they have a good time anywhere they go. In any event, that is when our new dining hall will be open. Sure, no one on my team will commit to it, but I will! Time for you pre-planners to start looking ahead because you know when you start thinking about it again....it may be too late.

C'mon, put some money down now and sign up......you know you want to!

What Lies Beneath the Surface

2011-09-21T11:52:00.000-07:00

The dynamics of running a Boy Scout summer camp may be seemingly easy to some but it actually comes with a fair amount of challenges. There are set dynamics that do not change such as we have an opening date and a closing date. Each week we open the gates at a certain time, have meetings at certain times and have programs at certain times. Sure we could change the times, but they are going to happen one way or the other whether you prepare for them or not. Then there are material dynamics such as food, equipment, program material, etc. These are things that change from day to day, week to week and is something you need to stay on top of. Not only to you have to get what you need, you also need to keep an eye on how much it is going to cost you at the end of the day. So you find yourself doing a balancing act; on one hand you want to adequately provide for what you need, on the other hand you want to use your resources judiciously. There are dynamics that involve the facilities, the professional organization, governmental/health/BSA regulations and then, of course, there is the dynamic of personnel........the staff you hire.

Hiring a staff to work at a seasonal BSA camp is akin to the statement of the lead character in Forrest Gump, "life is like a box of chocolates.......you never know what you are going to get." Boy, is this ever true when you interview some of these guys you have never met before and have to make a decision based on a 15 minute chat and an application form. Lucky for us though, we have had a robust CIT program for some time so that the vast majority of new applicants already have a weeks worth of evaluations. Usually with that and of course the impression we have at the interview, makes the decision that much easier. If you don't know already, we hire to "fit". That is not to say that we don't look at qualifications such as skills, whether or not they have had leadership roles, whether or not they are Eagle Scouts.......but at the end of the day we want staff members who understand what camp is, who respect themselves and each other but most importantly they respect the job we do and the program we offer to scouts. Every year there may be a handful of individuals that have me shaking my head at some point half way through the summer; but when taken as a whole, our staff has gotten stronger and stronger as each season passes and I am very proud of them.

However this dynamic is more than just who you hire it also involves a depth which we have a hard time fathoming. Now, this is nothing new......I can remember the friends I hung out with when I was a young staff member and I also remember all the things we did that could have easily gotten us fired at any time during those respective summers. All this was done without the knowledge of the "management." Oh, they may have suspected something from time to time, but camp ran smoothly and everyone did their jobs.....and if you did do something stupid (like break your arm) parents would have the general feeling of "well he was being an idiot, he deserved it...." That wasn't meant to be mean but instead that generation's idea of making their youth responsible for their actions. Today, I am the one who is unaware of the undercurrent of staff activities and that probably is a good thing. What I look for is adherence to safety rules, youth protection and of course making sure that the staff understand that their sole purpose in life at Camp Parsons is to serve the scouts. I have noticed though, that as each season goes by, the staff seems to operate as a whole a lot more smoothly. The only reason I get a sense of this "undercurrent" is when younger staff become older staff they then share with me events that occurred a few years ago and now give me information which puts everything in to perspective now, when back then I wouldn't have a clue why someone couldn't get along with someone else.

I understand this dynamic of staff life and as long as the program moves forward and we are delivering the product that scouts come for, it probably is a wash with me. However, I have come to the conclusion that should any of this undercurrent reach the surface it will be eliminated with prejudice.

After all.....there is only one reason why we exist.

Moving Forward.....

2011-09-19T11:27:00.000-07:00

Last week was a very busy week capped off by a half day of seminars on Friday. The talks were good and the purpose of this event was to get a lot of my colleagues together to understand the administrative and government rules and regulations of our profession. I had planned to take this weekend easy as it was a bit of a break in the usual football season where the Huskies were playing away, so I could leisurely tailgate from my couch. Unfortunately I found out on Thursday that we were going to have a meeting with the architect and mechanical engineer about the dining hall during the work party this past weekend. I debated about whether or not to go, but eventually decided it would be in my (and I suppose the camp's) best interest that I attend this meeting. So I pried myself from bed in the wee hours of Saturday morning and headed towards camp.

It was grey day, but not too cold and the best thing was that there was hardly any traffic on the road. I know the trip is a good one when in the first hour you never have to touch or adjust your cruise control. As I wound my way up Hwy 101 I came across a few cars that moved off to the side so as not to interfere with my transit and I arrived at camp shortly thereafter. When I got out of my car though, the wind was howling and the temperature seemed a good 15 degrees lower than it was when I started the trip that morning. The canal was indeed "angry" with white caps as far as you could see (hidden by the curtain of grey clouds right down to the waterline). Had a quick breakfast and went off with Ken, Gary, Scott and Greg to sit down with our architect and engineer to go over a few details so as to finalize the footprint of the dining hall. I think our architect is finally getting it as when we began talking about the type of doors he mentioned that we probably would not want the window length door (even though it had been recommended for improving natural light) based on our previous discussion about "scout physics". We find that this particular "natural law" states that anything built below a the level of a scout's waist that is glass or otherwise fragile will be destroyed within 12 hours of said scout's presence in the area. I am not happy about the doors into the SMG, but then again, it is an adult building now and this law is excluded in this particular dimension of scouter physics. At the end of the day we had put in about 4 or 5 hours into this meeting (which carried on to lunch) and I felt pretty good about everything at the end of it. We did decide on a few changes; one being that the dining hall will move further south and perhaps a little more east of where our current drawings have it at. This will reduce the amount of excavation required for the back hillside. We came to a decision on the type of windows as well as placement of those windows and the previously mentioned doors. One of the biggest pieces of good news was the fact that the several construction firms we have talked with have consistently agreed......it will take only 6-8 months to build this structure. Wow......that would be faster than I had thought. Of course this is dependent on the fact that we don't run into any major issues, like digging up an Indian burial site or something........ If this timeline does work out, then we are looking at a new dining hall for the 2013 season, period, as long as the money keeps coming in. Now that is an event to look forward to.

Although the turn out was small, we had a good group of folks show up to the work party this weekend. Matt Jainga and Chris Myers came up once again and along with Trent Jackson they were able to make major advances with the new trading post. Hopefully we can get that roofed in the next week or two and be ready for electrical, plumbing and eventually a large concrete pour for the floor. Other staff members that showed up were Andy Briggs, Gary Smith, Greg Batie, Alex Minami, Jim Watson and of course Keith Ingebrigtson is still serving as "acting" Ranger. We also had the usual crew and even Meredith came up for awhile and helped out. It remained windy for most of the weekend, a few times even waking me up in the middle of the night but it never got much colder. Everything is put away for the summer except the pier floats as we do have a few programs that go through October. The boathouse actually has boats in it now....how appropriate.

My initial plan was to head up for the meeting and then come back home afterwards as I have a lot of work that I need to finish. However, once arriving to camp and chatting with folks and the fact that someone had to man the Traeger grill for dinner, I did stick around that evening and chatted with a few folks. It is always nice coming to camp as you feel that there is nothing else you need to worry about. You literally check your issues at the door (or entrance to camp) and you once again become a part of this 93 year old program. If life could only be this simple; a single minded purpose of why we are there, no ego, no agenda, no drama......if not, then it should be.

Now we have meetings with the kitchen design consultant along with the architect this week. We already have a difference of opinions on flow and equipment in the kitchen itself, but I will listen to whatever advice we give....did you hear that, Gary? I will listen.....then I will say how it is going to be.........

One final note, Camp Parsons lost one of its long time leaders this weekend, Bob Lamm. I probably will write more later, but Bob served as Assistant Camp Director and eventually Camp Director through a good part of the 40's and 50's before moving on to the the National Office. I had the pleasure to work with Bob on a few Camp School staffs and although we did not see eye to eye on things, he did have passion for Camp Parsons. Bob retired to Sequim with his wife (whom he met when she was the camp nurse here at CP) and would make yearly visits to camp. May he Rest in Peace.

Changing With The Times

2011-09-16T11:22:00.000-07:00

I was surprised at the number of comments sent to me regarding my mother's birthday, so thank you....she was indeed a remarkable woman. I mentioned yesterday that when she graduated medical school, antibiotics had yet to be put to use in a clinical setting. Indeed, although penicillin had been discovered in the 1920's, its true application did not come until 1942 and by the end of WWII it was being massed produced for allied troops. Outside of surgery, medicine was a lot of "bed rest" and keeping things clean, trying to keep a fever under control and keeping pain under control. Medicine has expanded by leaps and bounds in the last sixty years and continues to do so today. People complain about having to see so many "specialists" these days, but the fact is that medical information and knowledge is seemingly infinite that you need to specialize in certain fields just to get a grip on things. Then again, there is a lot to be said about bed rest too.

Camp Parsons has seen changes with the times as well. If you look at the early photos of camp, particularly in the buildings, you see chandeliers made up of candles as electricity was not present in camp during those years. There were no effective roads so supplies either had to be obtained at camp (lumber, stones, etc.) or brought in by boat from Seattle (food supplies, tools, scouts, etc.). However if you look at the pictures in the late 20's, you start seeing electrical wires running through various parts of camp. It was thought that this was for refrigeration as well as use in the camp office. The only communication in those days were letters that were sent back daily...no phone service existed in Jackson Cove at that time. As a matter of fact, even when I started on staff, although we did have a phone, it was a party line with other neighbors along Bee Mill Rd. You may have had your own number, but the line was shared so there were many times you would pick up the phone and hear one of the neighbors talking to someone else. In those early years at camp, days were days and nights were nights......you went to bed when the sun went down (or shortly thereafter) and got up at the crack of dawn. You either walked in the dark or carried a lantern; there were no fancy halogen lights that you had strapped around your head. They used mules then, now we use trucks. As time passed, camp slowly evolved into the 20th century. Roads were built, electricity was expanded as was the use of propane and flush toilets were placed into campsites as was electricity and hot water tanks. Not everyone favored this progress; Reginald Parsons himself was so angry that he asked the council to remove his name from the camp.....luckily they choose not to. The first time I was Program Director I thought we had broken into modern times. We had several typewriters.....not just your plain old typewriter, no, no, no......it was an IBM electric typewriter with a "ball" head. How's that for fancy, eh? It was a good thing to have this powerful machine as you had to make carbon copies and it took some strength with the old manual typewriters to get that carbon good enough so that you could use the mimeograph. Yes, today we have scanners and printers, in those days we had the old mimeograph. It was a big metal cylinder that had a clamp, which you put your carbon copy on, ink side up then ratchet it down. Then you filled the ink cartridge with some transparent liquid that would explode if a match was lit within a mile of it, or you would have an out-of-body experience if you breathed too much in. Then, taking both hands, you would grasp the handle attached to the wheel of the drum and start turning it and.....voila, copies! In a few years later we made great leaps.....we had an electric mimeograph and with that, an overhead projector. Life was good. It wasn't until the late 90's we started seeing computers at camp and they were all IBM hand-me-downs that had basic on them and the first copies of windows. We were thrilled.....some of us estatic.

Today I can't walk through my office without tripping over some one's computer that is being charged, or a cell phone, or a video camera or a two-way radio or whatever. E-mails zip back and forth and when someone finds a mistake on the web page or one of our handouts....bingo, fixed in seconds with a few keystrokes of a twenty-something year old staff member (not me.......it takes me a half hour to find the edit page). In my day, the scoutmaster used to come in and say "can I check out one of those hand cranked ice cream machines?" today it's "what is the pass code for the wireless"). In the old days, the staff would be trying to decide to go to the drive in or the one movie theatre in Port Townsend, today they are annoyed when the wireless Internet goes down. Port Townsend was the only place to go as the toll on the Hood Canal floating bridge was $2.50 each way in the mid-70's (that was a quarter of your weekly pay). Today they decide between Victoria, Canada or places in Seattle. It seems that we are ramping up with the times.....is that good?

I think I agree with old Reginald.....let's pull the plug and just camp.

Same Name, Different Things

2011-09-15T13:01:00.000-07:00

I have attended National Camp School over the years as a participant in Program, Management, Aquatics and Shooting Sports. I have taught Aquatics, Program and Management during other years and have been a Section Lead for Program and Management as well as the NCS course director these last several years. So although I spend most of my time on the Hood Canal, I have had the opportunity to meet many people who either work or run other camps throughout the Western Region as well as many from across the United States. Throughout the years, I pretty much know most (if not close to all) the camps that operate within the Western Region and have a rough idea of how their various programs and seasons work. I guess I should qualify that as I had a very young as well as brand new Camp Director in my management section this season who was running a camp that I had never heard of before. Even more surprising is that it has been in operation since the 1920's, runs for eight sessions and has the same number of scouts pass through it as Camp Parsons. It took me back as I am sure I would have crossed paths with someone from that camp, either staff or camper, over the years, yet I never heard of it. This led me as well as some of the other instructors to surmise that it was a front for a terrorist training camp. In any event, as a result of these interactions I have had the opportunity to "virtually" see other camps in operations which has given me the opportunity to compare them to ours.

Most camps nowadays have web pages, though seldom are they kept up to date. On those web pages there are usually links to videos, pictures, program schedules etc, and it is interesting to look at some of this material. First, I must say that the vast majority of BSA camps are in beautiful locations, usually on a lake, and most are nestled in the mountains with plenty of wilderness around them. There are a few which have fantastic locations but have a lot of "civilization" around them which can pose problems when you try to maintain that camping feel. At Camp Parsons we are lucky to have significant "buffers" around us so that private development cannot make significant inroads. One of the drawbacks about being close to these developments is that you have a plethora of "looky-loos" or as we like to refer to them....intruders, that paddle, row or boat by the waterfront to satisfy their curiosity. Unfortunately, it is a fact of life and we just deal with it. The second thing that I noticed is that every camp has some "thing" that I wish we had; a climbing tower that has numerous types of challenges and seems to be under cover; a pristine lake which is private yet big enough to motor boat in; COPE courses; different types of program equipment, and so on. These are things I would like to pluck off that camp and put onto ours. Of course, there are other things I have seen that I am glad we do not emulate. I have noted in numerous summer camps that there seems to be a trend of having older staff members, and by older I mean over the age of 60. I have seen pictures of them teaching rifle/shotgun, nature/ecology, and scoutcraft amongst other things. Now granted, we have had a few of our seasoned staff return, but that is the exception and not the rule. Ken and I don't count as we seldom get in front of the scouts. The other trend is the lack of adherence to a uniform. You see some guys in shorts, others in long pants; you see some in jeans and others wearing their high school t-shirt. Some of the California camps seem to make up their own uniform......I think they forgot they work for the BSA which actually has a uniform. These are little things, but since role modeling is a huge aspect of being on staff, adherence to this needs to trump personal style.

So, throughout the region and the nation, every council has a Boy Scout camp that adheres to a National Standard......"standard" being the key word in name but perhaps not in execution. Every camp is different probably as it should be. Some are cook out camps, some are dining hall camps; some are on rivers, others on lakes and others have a swimming pool and we.....well, we have an ocean. I could go on and on about the opportunities as much as I can go on critiquing things that I see but regardless of what I think, one thing is apparent......the scouts seem to have a great time no matter what camp I look at. The adults may have a different opinion (which may easily be valid) but the kids have smiles on their faces.

On a personal note (as it is MY blog), today is my mother's birthday. She passed away almost five years ago and if she was alive today she would have been 96. I came late into my parent's lives but it never affected the way they raised and cared for me. My father was much older than my peer's fathers yet he could routinely out hike any of them...I often wish that I will have his strength when I get to be that age he was when he was Scoutmaster. My mother on the other hand was a brilliant and intelligent woman. She graduated medical school in the 1930's (before antibiotics were invented) and immigrated to the US with my father and family after WWII. She worked in many positions after arriving in Seattle, perhaps most importantly she was the Chief physician of the Fircrest School for the mentally retarded in north Seattle as well as the Professor of Pediatrics at the UW Medical School where she co-founded the CDMRC at the UW and Children's Orthopedic Hospital while still having a small private practice with my father. Even after retirement she took on almost a full time job with the Santa Barbara County Health Department for several years in California as well as cared for the retired Franciscan monks at the Santa Barbara Mission. For her work, the Franciscans inducted her into their order and when she passed on, she was buried as a Franciscan friar (with the title of OFM behind the many titles she had). It was interesting viewing my mother's remains as she was dressed in the robes of a monk. I know she would have appreciated that (but would not have expected it). Her work touched not only our family but thousands of mentally and congenitally disabled children who are better off today because of her good work. Like my father, my mother always supported me in all of my endeavours and served as an inspiration to me. I wish I had a tenth of her intelligence and humility. I always celebrate her life each day in my mind, but today it is the anniversary of her life which I can celebrate out loud.

Quick Weekends

2011-09-12T10:26:00.000-07:00

If you didn't know it by now, the "mystery" guest was Adam Desautels who literally flew in for the game and then back out to Arizona. Actually it was more than just the Husky game as we went to the Mariners/Royals game that evening courtesy of Alaska Airlines and the BSA. The football game was far more enjoyable than the Mariners game.....at least we won that afternoon. It was a fantastic day with the temperature getting up to 88 degrees that afternoon which made for a great tailgate. A big thanks goes to Meredith for putting on that soiree that had appetizer after appetizer coming all morning and afternoon. Meredith actually printed up a specialized menu complete with pictures and descriptions of what we were eating. I think this will become a staple of the tailgate.......that should beat my hot dogs and burgers. We had a large number of staff come by that day. Outside of Adam we had James Boyle, Steve Petek and his crew, the Johnson family, Andy Hoyle, Andy Briggs, Bruce and George Montgomery, Billy Price, Alex Easton, Anton Kramer (and young Monica) and Dan Gelis. Outside of George, we also had some our "younger" contingent consisting of Chris Lalonde and Derek Hayes. Some of our younger staff are now going to the UW so I suspect we will see more of them once school begins.

The Huskies played well, better than I thought they would. That being said......they have a LONG way to go to be a "contender". I must admit though, I like the way this season is starting.

For those of you who are concerned, the fire on the Duckabush is not a threat to Camp Parsons. The fire began fairly well up the valley, near Little Hump and Big Hump and is heading up the ridge. No one likes to see a fire on the Olympic Peninsula, but there can be a bright side to this. When I was on I-5 near downtown, there was a stretch of freeway that had an unimpeded view of the Olympic Mountains just at sunset. Given the smoke from the Duckabush, it gave the sun a very "blood-red" appearance that was captivating......almost to the point where one could run off the road. That didn't happen. I have no doubt that the fire will burn itself out. DNR has been dropping water on it routinely and keeping it at a manageable level.

These last two weekends have been fun, but they have had a very packed agenda. It is hard to relax when you have to adhere to a schedule to make sure you get through all the things you need to do. I was exhausted after Labor Day weekend as much as I am after this last one. Don't get me wrong, I had a great time at the games and meeting up with a large number of people it is just that the work week is very draining and I feel that I am spent before the week begins. We have a work party coming up and have a partial schedule conflict with work.......but I am going to make something happen so that I can get to camp. Regardless, it will be another "quick" weekend and I probably will be just as tired at the end of that as well.

Ha-Ha-Hawaii

2011-09-09T10:47:00.000-07:00

Well, the Huskies are ramping up to play the University of Hawaii Warriors (no longer the "Rainbow Warriors") this Saturday at Husky stadium. Looks like another beautiful day for a tailgate and thankfully a time when a game should be played.....12:30 PM. That should be a law, no more late afternoon or, God forbid, evening games. Yes I know it is all about TV revenue.....but still, there is something about a mid-day game. Maybe it is that you have the rest of the day to do something else. Hopefully the Dawgs have readied their pass defense for this game. Looking at the Warriors I am concerned that Price may not have enough time in the pocket to get any of the plays off......there are some big looking kids on that front line. It should be a good (and hopefully victorious) game.

The tailgate will be a little different. Given my schedule this weekend, I will not be driving up to Seattle with my rig but instead in something a little smaller. Meredith Daniels is cooking for us on Saturday and she is dusting off Ed Dayton's old truck to bring to the tailgate instead of mine. Ed had that Chevy for some time and it is emblazoned with the Thunderbird on the back window, very appropriate! So we know that Ed will be there in spirit. We have another surprise guest who hopefully will show up.....more on that later.

Congratulations to Brendan Bartlett who is now promoted to Lt. Colonel in the US Air Force. Brendan and his family are currently stationed in Louisiana and this promotion (in my eyes) has long been coming. I received an invitation for the ceremony and if Brendan is reading this, I did try everything I could to come down and celebrate this with you all. Now you are ready for retirement..........or maybe in awhile.

The weather continues to be great here in the PNW. We have a work party coming up pretty soon...hopefully it can keep it going through that as well.!!

Roaming the Blogs

2011-09-08T11:59:00.000-07:00

A former staff member sent me a link to a Scoutmaster's blog who summarized their troop's stay at CP this past summer. Actually it was more centered around his son who has special needs. Overall he was very complementary about the camp, particularly the setting, the staff and the campfires. However there were a few comments that were written that made me shake my head. His two "drawbacks" that he saw were a) his campsite and, of course, b) the food.

His comment on the campsite was that it was beautiful but too far away (Mt. Olympus) from the Dining Hall. This was also complicated by the fact that he could not get any sleep because of the wooden bunks, the snoring fellow Scoutmasters, and that Kybo light which apparently was shining right into his eyes while he tried to sleep. It is funny as Mt. Olympus is one of our sought after campsites; a beautiful and private location right on the water. I find it interesting that everyone has something to complain about: Rangers, Turner, Anderson are too far away and on a hill; Olympus and Copper City are too far away from the Dining Hall and the rooster wakes them up in the morning; Townsend is too big for the bathroom facility it has and is always shared with other troops; Skokomish has to put up with people throwing things down into the campsite and they have to walk up a hill to get in AND out of the campsite. Constance and Dungeness, people walk through their campsite and Quilcene.....well cars and trucks go by and strangers use their bathroom facilities. The only remedy I can see is to place the Dining Hall, SMG and Trading Post in a central location and wagon wheel campsites all around it with all lights going off by ten, and queen sized beds with mattresses for all adults with two toilets for each scout and scouter.....yay! Yeah....right. I have no doubt that there are better things and more comfortable things that you could be doing instead of spending a week with us, but it is "camp".....you can always adapt it to fit your needs (air mattress, ear plugs, and a jerry rigged shade on part of the outside light). What is wrong with a nice walk before and after dinner.

His description of the food? "Nasty". Yes that is a very descriptive term and one without any insight or thought. You know, the food may be lacking for some, it may not be what you would choose to eat....yes, sometimes it is "cold", some times it doesn't look "right" but it is food; well prepared, safe and whether you like it or not, very edible. As I mentioned last week, I have eaten in that dining hall more than ANYONE that reads that blog.....I can tell the seasons where it has been lacking and last summer was not one of those summers. If you want nasty, I can take to some places in this world where that term could be used. I don't like macaroni and cheese and I don't eat it the day that it is served.....it is not "nasty" it is just that I don't like macaroni and cheese. If I didn't eat anything for a couple of days........I would probably think it is the most gourmet food in the world. Any Mom that reads this blog knows that when you cook for a large number of people, there is always something that someone doesn't like.....that doesn't make it nasty. At camp, sure, there may be numerous processed things that you don't like (but I can tell you the kids....you know, the reason we exist, enjoy it.....either that or they put on one hell of a show eating it) but if that is the case....head down to the Geoduck and have a burger......or better yet, do what you do best, go cook for your scouts. With the new dining hall we hope to reduce the "nastiness" of the food by being able to have things like a salad bar as an alternative.....but then again you will complain that the salad is "bagged" salad and not fresh picked off the farm.....geesh.

You can tell that food is my hot button. I understand the complaints that we receive and some are worth merit, but I have worked since the mid-70's and we have not had a break out of food borne illness, starvation or malnutrition since I have been here. So let's tone down the hyperbole and simple say that the food is not what you or your son would eat normally.

Outside of that.....the blog was a good read and it got me back in "rant" mode.

Is it just me or is anyone else getting annoyed that we were robbed of our summer, particularly with the last two weeks of 80 plus temperatures? I mean, had you shifted this weather to four weeks ago....it would have been perfect. What a cruel joke mother nature plays......obviously not a scout.

Whew!

2011-09-06T10:12:00.000-07:00

It was a long, warm weekend here in the Pacific Northwest and I actually had the rare opportunity to enjoy the whole Labor Day weekend. Usually I am making up for my summer indiscretions at camp by taking the duty for every holiday weekend, but due to a few changes there has been some wiggle room for me......and of course I am going to take advantage of them. The main goal of this weekend was to attend the Husky opener which was against Eastern Washington late on this past Saturday afternoon. I decided to wait until early Saturday morning to head into town so as to avoid the rush as well as have the opportunity to see some folks on Friday evening. It was an easy drive on Saturday morning (the rush of course being on Thursday and Friday) and I rolled into Husky stadium well before noon to set up camp. We had a large number of visitors come by; many current and former staff members; several parents of current and former staff members also swung by. It was a very pleasant afternoon.

The game however, was not that pleasant. Oh, don't get me wrong, I am very happy with a win, even one that was a bit of a struggle......and really that was the problem, it shouldn't have been a struggle. Most of you who read this already know that Eastern Washington completely dominated the field; out rushing and out passing the Huskies. Had Eastern not dropped the ball on four occasions they most likely would have won. However, that is the rub, they DID drop the ball wereas the Huskies were much better at holding onto the ball, and when the ball was actually passed, they were catching them. The achilles heel seems to be the defensive secondaries.......something that UW has had problems with going back to Tyron's days. I think they will improve, I think the offensive line is stronger this year giving Price the time to get the play off, but they need to be more aggressive with their playing. Anyway, that is my two cents; I really do not want to be an armchair coach as I know there is no way I could do Sarkisian's job. Much like I appreciate some candid remarks about our program from Scoutmasters, Sark probably feels the same about most of us "commentators" and realizes there is more there than we could ever know.

Despite all this, it was a relief to start the season with a win and hopefully we will carry that to a second one this next Saturday when we play Hawaii. The remainder of the day was enjoyable as well. The more I talk with my staff the more I realize that they are a pretty sharp group of "kids". Every year there is a group that comes of age (meaning 21 and older) who are able to participate in some of the evenings and breakfasts that we have and by doing that I have the ability to get to know them more and have a new appreciation for their wit and personality. Then again, some just annoy you.........I guess it is a love/hate type of thing.....very scout like.

Ken just caught a couple of silvers off the Quilcene river....figures. I could stand there for a week and get nothing but wet boots; it takes him just a few hours. It must be relaxing just hanging out by the side of the river on a very warm afternoon......after having such an activity packed weekend it is something I should do.

Have A Great Labor Day Weekend

2011-09-02T10:06:00.000-07:00

Not much else to say!

Fall Is Here

2011-09-01T11:07:00.000-07:00

I don't really pay attention to the arbitrary date that says that summer has begun; it begins when there is more sun and less rain. The same goes for fall; it is not when a number on calendar comes around, it is when the Huskies play their first home game......then fall has begun. Although the summer camping season has ended, we look forward to a whole season of college football. Now I know that not all of you who read this blog are Husky fans, or even football fans for that matter, but it is one of my yearly pleasures to attend football games live (except for the idiotic ones on Thursday evenings.....hope that never happens again) and mingle with old and new friends at the tailgates and at the game. This weekend should be good as the forecast says it will be sunny and warm and that is the best time to be having a tailgate. I am looking forward to seeing how this team does without Locker but I am hopeful that we are moving ahead.....then again if we lose......well, let's just say that what words I have probably will not be too scout like....

I guess it is the sign of the post camp season wind down......the statistics for the website have dropped significantly. We usually have hundreds of hits daily during our ramp to the season as well as during operations. Now we are down to 10-15 hits a day. Most of our viewers come from Washington followed closely by Oregon and California. However each month we have hits from just about every state in the Union. Even more interesting is that we have routine hits from countries like Iran.........really. I expect viewers from Germany, Italy, Iraq, etc.....anywhere we have a military mission we probably have someone who was a scout or had been on staff, but it is interesting to think about why someone is looking us up. I guess we have a worldwide fan base.

Well, blue card requests are starting to increase currently. This is where we start receiving e-mails from various troops about lost blue cards or ones that they thought should have been complete. Ken will have to deal with that for the next few months.....hopefully it will die down around December. First work party is coming up in a few weeks and we have a Dining Hall committee meeting towards the end of the month. More importantly though......we have football!

Assimilation Back Into Life

2011-08-31T10:30:00.000-07:00

One of the things I dislike during the summer is the fact that I need to travel up and down the canal a couple of times each week to head back to my professional job and then return back to camp. It becomes tiresome as the weeks go by but there really is no way I can get around it unless I took a leave of absence from my work......and there is no way my colleagues would ever let me do that. Of course, on the bright side of that is I am always looking forward to heading back up the canal and it gives me a goal to shoot for each week. Now that the season has come to an end, I am back to the day to day grind of my regular job and it has been a busy 10 days of straight work to get caught up as well as fulfill my obligations to my colleagues. It takes its toll as the day is the same for me whether it is 2 PM or 2 AM......the only thing is that I am more tired at 2 AM. This past weekend I had to come in quickly for an emergency in the wee hours of the morning and it wasn't until a couple of hours later that I knew I was really tired as I found out that when I dressed quickly.....I put my boxers on backwards. Sure, that might be too much information for you......but it took me a few minutes to figure out what the heck happened when I went for a toilet break.......I really am getting too old for this job. Thank God it wasn't in a public restroom as it was quite a sight before I figured it out.

Assimilation back to "normal" life from a camp routine does take a little time. You have to realize that the senior staff have lived the Boy Scout life for a little over 10 weeks, beginning with Camp School, through staff week and then the standard summer season. The life is somewhat regimented with specific times for specific events. You always awaken at the same time and you usually wind up going to bed at the same time. There is not a lot of room for variability. During the year I seldom eat during the day when I am at work but at camp, there are three squares a day and when I return back to work, I find myself being a little hungry in the morning and afternoon. A favorite of mine which is mentioned in one of my staff's own blog is that picking out what to wear on a daily basis really is a chore.........not just a uniform anymore. I find myself referring to other colleagues mistakes as not being "scout like" and have found myself on one or two occasions over the years actually putting my hand up in the scout sign to quiet the group of people I need to talk to. I miss the immediate gratification of watching your work make a difference which you see in the scouts or staff that attend camp......it is nice to see that your work has purpose, which is difficult to see in my day to day job. I miss the infectious enthusiasm and good humor of my younger staff and I miss living vicariously through their youthful optimism. There are times that I find this assimilation to be frankly depressing as you wonder what life would be like if every day was like your best one at camp.

The fact is that life at camp is an ideal and one that hopefully you can bring back and apply to whatever you do during the off season or for whatever the future holds for you in your personal or professional life. For me, I just look to the next opportunity to do something different than what I do professionally and for many years that opportunity has been doing what I have been doing on the shores of Jackson Cove. It is funny......I never have angst of having to assimilate back to camp life. Maybe I am doomed.

It Begins Already?

2011-08-30T10:13:00.000-07:00

I was going to talk about the ramp up to the 2012 season in a couple of weeks, but I guess my hand is forced now. We received our first staff application for the 2012 season so it appears that we are off and running. The person applying is a seasoned CP staffer, however there is nobody on this current staff, or any for the past two decades who would know this individual. I throw that little tidbit out as now I know I will get a number of e-mails or texts asking "who?" So I will save you the time as I am not going to share that info until I talk with this person which may take several weeks, if not months to do so. It doesn't matter currently, nor does it matter what they are applying for.......the simple fact is that we are on our way to 2012.

My staff will tell you that I get very annoyed when I hear the word "last" come from their mouths. "This is the last program period"...."this is the last campfire"......"this is the last....." whatever. I have heard the word "last" for the past 37 years as it pertains to Camp Parsons. However it seems that every July I find myself standing at the same place, twirling the same key and looking at the "same" pier as I was in the 70's. It will be my "last" when I die or camp is sold. These last few years have brought former staff members to camp with their sons and when they stand with me behind the campfire bowl the conversation is almost identical amongst them all....."it doesn't really change, does it Mike." No, it doesn't, and it keeps going on. Sure, for an individual who knows he is going off to a professional job or something else, it is their "last" time as young staff member enjoying what all staff member enjoy. Sure, it is the last program, or campfire or whatever for that season.....but if you are around long enough you will find that the seasons truly blend together and program truly becomes something like a home....you leave and come back later and nothing really changes other than you. I am already thinking about 2013 and how I am going to use the new dining hall to herald a revitalized dining hall program, and don't get me going about planning for the 100th celebration.......which will not be our last.

Speaking of dining halls.....we are on our way with that as well. I just received the timeline from our architect which has assumed that the dining hall will be up and running by the start of the 2013 season. This, of course, will be a reality if we are able to hit our permit dates, funding needs and break ground no later than May of 2012. It can be done.....no.....it WILL be done. Enough talking, enough thinking....it is time to go forward. I have no intention of going a year without a dining hall, I went a year without a pier and it was not fun nor did it benefit our program. We will start with the project in ways that will not interfere with the 2012 operation, however it will limit what we can do around the dining hall which means Hullabaloo may see a change next summer. Regardless.....we are on our way.

Now It's Warm

2011-08-28T11:36:00.000-07:00

All summer long, grey, grey, grey......not a lot of rain, just grey days without sun and temperatures from 60 to 72 degrees, falling sometimes at night to the high 40's. Summer? Ha!! Now after the proverbial dust has settled (relatively as there still is a lot of dust) the temperature starts cranking to the high 80's through this entire week. That's is all I heard every day, "boy is it hot out here", "thank goodness for air conditioning" and so on and so on....... This is something you do not want to hear when you get back to the monotony of your professional job, particularly when you spend most of your days staring out of the window at these "gorgeous" days go by. I hope they all got sunburned!

UPS wound up last evening as the last bus headed back to Tacoma after the final campfire. Today our boys along with some of the UPS staff are breaking down the last vestiges of the summer season. All the floats will be coming in as well as the remaining sailboats and powerboats. By this afternoon, except for the pier float (that needs to stay in for fall fishing) camp will once again be ready for the winter months, at least with regards to the program areas. Ken tells me that they were able to get all the tents down by yesterday and stored away. You don't know what a big help this is as usually we have some rain during this time which then causes us to wait to take down tents or worse, take them down and hang them in the boat house until they are dry THEN fold them up and store them. It will be a relief to have this off his check list.

The Condit campout is coming to Camp Parsons, at least for a day of activities and competition. I have attended this outing every year for the past six or seven years and I hope to do so this year as well. Unfortunately they have pushed this event off until October so it will make it difficult with my schedule. I am hoping that we will be able to get some of our staff members out for a day to run the competitions they want to do......at least I will have the inside track on that and it will be a good way to make sure my competition doesn't cheat (unless I come up with something better). By October, I don't think it will be as warm as it is now.

Well, by this afternoon a calmness will descend on Camp Parsons as our final staff pack up and head on back to their respective places from whence they came. I wish I could be there this afternoon just to "listen" to the silence, particularly on this warm afternoon. Oh well, Husky football starts this next weekend and that should get camp off my mind for awhile, then again, most of camp comes by the tailgate anyway.

Capturing History

2011-08-27T11:11:00.000-07:00

It has been a longstanding project/hobby of mine to weave together the history of Camp Parsons from the day it was purchased in May of 1919 to the present. A few other staff members have taken on this hobby as well, one of which made it a personal obsession (that may be too harsh) during a period of time between his educational pursuits. Despite this, there seems to be a "black hole" of information regarding Camp Parsons prior to 1940. Now this may be due to the personnel issues that the Scouts had to deal with during this era, but I think that it also has to do with the fact that no one was thinking what they were doing would be ever considered historical. However through printed press (Seattle Star, Seattle PI), the council's own publication (Squirrel Barks) and a few other sources we can see how exciting this place was for scouts who were able to come up here during those times. The other source we have are through pictures. A few years ago, a former staff member from the 30's/40's came across a large number of glass negatives, some of which I have shared on this blog in the past. He slowly goes through these, has them developed and then sends them to us on disc. These are extremely clear, sharp photographs of camp in the 20's and it is interesting how much they have added to the story.

This summer I received another set of photos that were a gold mine of information. This set showed the construction of the Meany Dining Hall in the late 30's. You see the land prior to the building and you see the structure slowly take shape over time. There were also numerous photos from pier beach, which now puts that piece of land into more perspective. We know now that the Lewis and Clark (LC) cabin as well as the current cabin Enna were built before Dosewallips cabin. We know that LC has always been on the site it was built as has Dosewallips; however Enna has been moved a few times. Enna (otherwise known as Drake's Hotel and prior to that, The Director's Office) was originally at the end of the current pier of that era, right next to a large entrance sign for camp. The pier at that time was roughly in the same position as our current pier and Enna was located a little west of where the current Panabode (Aquatics Storage) is now. Everything is was covered by trees and a trail ran from that office up to the parade field. The area between the current museum and Mt. Townsend was a campsite called Skokomish. It also appears that the original entrance sign became the Copper City entrance sign later on (or they copied the entrance sign) as it is exactly the same. Regardless, when you see the faces of the Boy Scouts in those pictures you cannot discern them from the faces you see today.......that is truly a living history.

Every year we seem to have an elderly person who either attended camp or served on the staff from the 20's or 30's come by and visit. Usually they are with their families who (I think) are more interested than the former staff member is to visit. This year was no different as we had a gentleman this past week come by who worked in the late 20's and early 30's. Unfortunately I was not a camp but the guys who talked to him tell me that he predominantly worked at Pioneer Post (an outpost across the canal) and the remote staff site in the Olympic Mountains. He was unable to give us any details about the workings of the main camp. This has been somewhat frustrating as that although many of these elderly folks still remain fairly sharp, their recollections differ to the point that is difficult to try to piece things together. Many of their stories or recollections have a tendency to contradict the other. However despite that you can see they have a great fondness of their memories of their time on the Hood Canal.

What we are finding out now is that we are gaining bits and pieces of information from these folks as they pass away and their respective estate forwards us items that seemingly have no value to anyone but ourselves, but they are truly valuable in the information that they bring. It is like putting together a large jigsaw puzzle and waiting for that last piece to tie a secton of the puzzle together or that variable that will help solve an equation. I am sure it will all come with time........but I want to know now. We are only six seasons away from our 100th, it sure would be nice to have a seamless timeline and history by then, don't you think?

It's About The Scouts, Stupid

2011-08-26T12:52:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Evan Hansen who has been hired by the Chief Seattle Council to be the new District Executive assigned to the Aquila District. Evan has been a favorite "son" of Camp Parsons and more recently served as the Program Director (amongst other things) at Camp Pigott. Evan has worked in various areas of camp, but he took over Shooting Sports after a ten year run by Bill Montgomery (who is now also working at Camp Pigott). Evan replaces Dan Gelis who has been promoted to District Director and now takes on more responsibilities. Dan is also a ten year veteran of Camp Parsons and has served as the Camp Director of Camp Pigott for the past three seasons. Evan is a talented, hard working young man and will continue the great work that Dan has done in the Aquila District for the last four years. I don't think Evan will be heading back up to Pigott nor will Dan, but Anton Kramer will be the new Camp Director for the next few seasons. Anton is also a Camp Parsons veteran as well as a former DE in Oregon and a previous Camp Director at Camp Pioneer. It is always great to see camp folks move on to the profession.

A number of adults who attended camp this summer occasionally gave me a little ribbing about the "Parsonification" of Camp Pigott. I know it is all in good humor but I often ask myself why they think that way? I mean we both run a traditional Boy Scout camp and have elements required by National Standards. I don't think Camp Pigott has changed any of the names of their activities or patrol competitions, I don't think they have changed their staff song to align to ours, outside of guys who worked at Camp Parsons for over five years, I don't think anything else has changed the core of what we are supposed to offer......an exciting program, run by patrols in the outdoors. Camp Parsons and Camp Pigott are a piece of property, that's all. It is the staff that makes the camp experience and the only reason why the staff exist is for the benefit of the scout/patrol/troop that attends......that is it. Sure we take pride in our name just like one would take pride in a team. However team players change (particularly the professional ones) and can be a member of numerous teams in a lifetime....it doesn't make them any less better than who they were. The only "Parsons thing" that we push is customer service and keeping our eye on our goal......to make sure the scouts have a great time while learning new skills, making friends and living the scout oath and law. I can pick up my staff, put a "closed" sign on the entrance to Camp Parsons, drive to a camp that is currently shut down and start operations there. The program quality will be the same, however the experience may be lacking (like jumping off the pier). It is not about property, it is not about a patch on a jacket, it is not about a song.......it is about the scouts, stupid. That's all it is.

Does it work? Well you tell me how it affected Camp Pigott; 60% increase in attendance in 3 seasons, a budget in the black, and the addition of another week at Camp Pigott. I think you can say there is some success by keeping your eye on the mission.

UPS wraps up their student sessions on Saturday and their and our staff will leave on Sunday. It has been a rough week for Ken. I don't think our boys understand that everything that happens at camp is nothing more than a reflection of him....he takes it seriously. I think he is looking forward to a little peace and quiet before the weekend programs begin to start. I like to walk around camp and know that there is no one else in camp....an eerie but calm silence.....beautiful.

It's The Little Things

2011-08-25T09:36:00.000-07:00

It is funny how the simplest, little thing can make the biggest impact. It could be a staff member stopping and talking to a young scout walking by, the memory of which is emblazoned in that young scout's mind for the rest of his life and for that reason alone he looks fondly at his time at camp. It really could be anything that we do on a daily basis that may make a mark in someone else's life. I am sure I told the story of how a staff member that I was ambiguous about did something that made me change my mind about their "worth". It was many, many years ago (long before our current staff) and again, it was something simple. It was a Friday afternoon during Hullabaloo when the entire camp was in front of the dining hall and I was on the other side of camp sitting in my office alone finishing up some project....no one knew I was there because the lights were off except for the glow from my computer screen. I looked out the window and saw this particular staff member walking across the SMG parade field heading to the parking lot. He was on his way to meet some of the guys down at the Halfway House for lunch. He was a 19 y/o director and had no specific Hullabaloo duties until later so this was acceptable. Coming from the parking lot were two scouts, probably around 14 years old. This staff member passed them and said "hey guys, how are you doing?" and they responded "fine" and kept walking, except they were heading down towards the beach, not the dining hall. The staff member was out of my view but I heard him say "hey guys, were are you going?" which the response was "just walking around." That staff member came back into view heading toward the scouts. I could hear him asking why they weren't at the the Hullabaloo and they said they didn't want to participate. The staff member reminded them they could not be walking around camp and had to stay with their troop.....and then the "small thing" happened....he walked them back to the other side of camp. Now, he could have just ignored those scouts as he was heading to do something fun with his buddies (which is what I expected) or he could have told those guys to head to the dining hall and then left. No, he walked them all the way over to the other side of camp and got them back with their troop. That small thing made a big impact on my view of that staff member and as a result, I had him take on more responsibilities as future seasons came.

I often wonder if the staff really understand that their actions will always speak louder than their words. That what they do is always going to be noticed somewhat by people that are "important". In other words, people that can make decisions that will affect what those staff members can or cannot do in their future camp "careers". I always get frustrated when I see a talented staff member not live up to his/her potential particularly when they are given every single opportunity and encouragement to do so. I am equally frustrated when an outstanding staff member makes a stupid mistake, not by chance, but by self-centered indulgences. Now these little things do not change the view of ones character but it does change ones view of maturity and in a Boy Scout camp that is important given what we do and what we entrust our young staff to do.

Things change; I look back on what I did as a sixteen-year old staff member and shudder at the thought of what I would do to a staff member should they do half of what I did then, today. I am surprised our antics didn't cost someone an arm or a leg, or that someone didn't get killed jumping off things taller than the tower into the canal. I would give you some examples, but I don't want any of my current staff getting some weird idea that they need to emulate these actions as all it will do is wind up having them banned from camp and possibly kicked out of the BSA. The changes from those times seem a bit paternal, however many are necessary to protect our youth, our camp and our environment. I do pine for some of the old days, like going up with 25 members of your troop and hiking over Marmot Pass, crossing Del Monte Ridge, down to the Dose river, up to Anderson Pass and down the Enchanted Valley........that was a standard hike, a small thing that made a big impression to me.

One of the reasons I believe Camp Parsons has done well is that we do pay attention to the little things as they make tackling the big ones that much easier. To be honest, the big things usually follow from those little things. So that attention to detail gets my attention, and those little things that my staff pay attention to make a big impression on me.

The Pros and Cons of The 2011 Season

2011-08-23T10:56:00.001-07:00

After returning to my "normal" life (though I consider being on the Hood Canal more normal) I found myself reflecting on this past season each evening. As I have mentioned many times before, it was a good season with a smooth running staff but like anything else, there were pros and cons. So, here is how I see it:

Program:
Pro: A genuinely enthusiastic staff that took pride in their work, whether it be in their area or as staff guides. Very few missteps with merit badges, very few "missed" early morning activities. The staff more than continued the tradition of excellence of which Camp Parsons is known for.
Con: Lack of innovation. This has been the same thing for the past several summers; we haven't had a new "bust out" program. There have been small additions in certain areas, but things like Beach Bonanza are getting old and tiresome. Something needs to take its place (and still jump off the pier).

Staff:
Pro: It was like they were all professionals. From the first Sunday that troops came in to (almost) the last Saturday closing ceremony, these guys looked like they had been doing it for years. There did not appear to be a learning curve as they were already almost at the top from the day we started. No cliques, no drama, no silos; it was one staff. Myself or Ken seldom had to deal with "issues". These guys were so good that I found myself enjoying conversations with staff under 18.
Con: I am getting to old to really understand these guys.

Food:
Pro: The food has been good for the last several years (and I don't care what anyone else has to say, I have eaten at CP more than any of you) and this year was no different. It was good, it was tasty and it was on time. I never had a dried out waffle or french toast at any meal I ate. Andy Briggs did a great job running the kitchen and managing his staff. I did not have to deal with one personality issue at all this year.....the crew did well together.
Con: The dining hall is 73 years old and built to feed 250 people........we have to feed 500 three time a day, what do you think? It is too crowded, the kitchen is limited in what it can put out with regards to a variety of foods and we can't run a salad bar (which some of you adults think is a constitutional right). I am not a fan of macaroni and cheese, then again I am not eleven years old. Anything institutional can always be lacking.

Troops:
Pro: We see the same wide-eyed scouts come to camp year after year and they all seem to have a great time. We are attracting a large number of out of council troops each year and they all come with enthusiasm and we have yet to disappoint them. We have a large number of Seattle troops that return year after year and they bring an infectious enthusiasm with them.
Con: Troop sizes are baffling, they are as low as 3 and as high as 96.......there should be a little more standardization for the scouts benefit (are you going to have SPL's rotate every three months?). More adults are coming along with the troops and this is not necessarily a good thing. The more adults, the more complaints about their sleeping areas and the fact that they may have to wait to use a bathroom. More and more demands for private campsites, special food needs and lately, more disabled adults wanting to drive around camp.

Facilities:
Pro: How can you not stand at the end of the pier and not been in awe? How can you not go out in a boat and look back at camp with the backdrop of the Olympic Mountains and not feel that you are in a special place? For a low budget, not-for-profit BSA camp located on a mile of a saltwater beach, everything runs amazingly well. With the help of a dedicated volunteer group we continually update our older facilities and build new ones in order to serve the needs of the scouts and yes, the adults. Every year we have added another bathroom or renovated an old one so that it is more user friendly. Flush toilets, dining hall, showers and a pier.....what else could you want from a BSA camp?
Con: Camp is 92 years old (93 season) and was built for a couple hundred people. Campsites were designed for 30 member troops.......what do you expect when we have over 500 people at camp? Saltwater is our enemy when it comes to maintenance. Bathrooms require septic systems which are generally twice the cost of the facility itself. The dining hall is inadequate to meet its mission, there needs to be more toilet facilities around camp and some of the trails need to be redone.

I probably can go on and on, but I only took a little break today to write this out. It is my estimation (which is the only one that matters in my blog) that the pros have and will always continue to outweigh the cons. That is not to say that we cannot improve, but changes need to be with a goal in mind, not just for the sake of change. I ruminate about bringing in new innovations but it needs to be in the same line of some of our current programs particularly if it is a camp wide program. Then again, some evaluations say that our program is too "busy" and we should schedule more down time. That is a valid point, but it is my opinion that a busy scout is a happy scout and eventually a tired scout that will sleep at night.

In the words of old blue eyes.....it was a very good year.

A Stumble at the End

2011-08-22T11:03:00.000-07:00

Closing campfire on Friday evening was a little long but a huge success as the boys were at the top of their game. Numerous skits and songs and the weather was great. We had no issues or pranks that evening and the troops got moving on Saturday morning. Unfortunately at the closing ceremony the proverbial foot that had not fallen yet came down during the ceremony. The staff have always show enthusiasm at all of our events and although some of it is pushed or forced, the intent is still there; the staff want to support the scouts and make everything we do fun. There are certain yells and cheers, some stock "lines" that the group will say as a group, choreographed hand clapping, etc. However all this madness is controlled somewhat by our program leaders making sure that some of our younger staff do not get out of control. Well the "governor" was off and the boys got really cranked up. You could hardly hear what was being said during the ceremony; awards were tossed to troops and it appeared that I had brought in a group of people who never worked at CP before or gone through staff training. Now granted, it was a minimal thing and I would imagine most of the staff would never have realized it, but from my standpoint the program and presence that we deliver has no beginning and no end. It may be the "last" ceremony for the guys but not for the scouts and certainly not for me. I want the same professionalism that we give in June and July to be given to that last program breath. I was equally culpable as I did not do anything to intervene and I really should have but I was a little taken aback that my senior leadership seemed oblivious to what was going out. We have since discussed this in excruciating detail and I think we are all fine now. However I do not like to end a season annoyed, particularly when I have an outstanding staff that delivered a great program. So we stumbled, but we did not fall.

On a lighter note, congratulations to Andy Briggs who was selected by the 2011 staff as staff member of the year. Andy is a Pharmacy student at the University of Washington and came to work with us as a replacement staff member 4 season ago. Since then he has served as our Shooting Sports Director and was section lead at NCS this season. Andy has been coming up on weekends throughout the off season to help out at camp and was hoping to be the Asst. Ranger, however due to personnel changes we asked him to be Head Cook. He willing took that job and made it his own. The kitchen ran well and the food was good. I think the staff made an excellent choice. Andy tells me that he plans on returning for the 2012 season.

The University of Puget Sound has descended upon camp this week. This is their 26th year of having part of their freshman orientation at Camp Parsons. When I was working in the office the day they arrived I could over hear some of their conversations that suggested to me that they feel they have some ownership of this camp.....that was an interesting thought. Maybe they will pitch in to the dining hall fund. We have 15 of our staff working this week, it should be fun for them......and yes, the governor is back on.

Our attention is now directed to the 2012 season which is a scant 42 weeks in the future. I already have had a few staff members "share" their thoughts about what they foresee for that staff. I guess it is always good to have dreams and hopes. The 2013 dates have been set and we will be opening registration hopefully in September. Nothing like looking to the future (and a new dining hall.......or is it dinning hall?)

Has the Fat Lady Sung?

2011-08-19T11:03:00.000-07:00

Today brings a close to the 2011 summer season program. Hullabaloo this afternoon followed by Octopus Cup, campfire then off to bed for an early morning dismissal of the 8th session troops. Breaking down camp will be easy this year as many things can stay the way they are for either UPS week or for the off season. Most of the boats will come in tomorrow as will the rope lines, but these are fairly simple things. We will celebrate our year as a staff on Saturday evening, have the OSM ceremony and then kick the boys out on Sunday morning before....sigh.,...UPS rolls in and begins their incessant jumping up and down, yelling and clapping. A number of our staff will be working the UPS week but as employees of the BSA. It works out much better that way.

It has been a great summer season with an outstanding staff. Although I have always enjoyed the various staffs we have had here through the year, this particular staff "jelled" quite well. I found myself even talking to first year staff members, can you believe that? I said at the beginning of the season how smoothly things picked up and as I look back on the summer, that is the way it has been. No real bumps, no real issues, no real "drama". It made my summer life that much easier. I am looking forward to most of these guys coming back, but then again, that is a new season and there are a lot of Husky football games between now and then.

We are well on our way to 2012 with five weeks full and and a couple coming close. We have folks already knocking on the door for 2013 and 2014. The dining hall project is moving along slowly but steadily. I think the contract for the architect will be complete soon and the technical drawings should follow shortly thereafter. Our design committee has asked for "outside" opinions with regards to the kitchen design and although there are some good ideas offered, what is forgotten is that we are a Boy Scout operation. Sure, we can change how we do things to help the design process, but I do not like to be wagged by the tail. We designed the kitchen so as to fit our program and that is having 400 plus scouts, 100 adults and 50 staff all sit down together, eat and then sing. After that, all those plates have to come back into the washroom at once....the design takes this into consideration and has established a good flow. It may not make sense to folks who design commercial kitchens or school kitchens but it makes sense for Camp Parsons. Donations for the project are slowly dribbling in, but there are some interesting things looming on the horizon, so we will see what happens with that. The council has not set a timeline for the completion of the project but I have.......2013.

So as the 2011 season draws to an end, the 2012 season starts on Sunday.......I guess the fat lady can't be found at camp.