Meet the first girls to join Cub Scouts Plymouth, Den 47

Please click on the link below to view the article from the Old Colony Memorial paper.

Old Colony Memorial Article

Meet the latest Northeast Region winner of the Adams Award.

Brendan Sullivan was born in distress, and the local hospital doctors quickly realized keeping him alive was beyond their capabilities. Fortunately, he was rushed to Boston Children’s Hospital, deemed America’s top pediatric facility by U.S. News & World Report. Brendan didn’t just survive — he thrived.

Last year, it was time to give back. For his Eagle project, Brendan returned to Boston Children’s to complete a two-part project for the hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit.

WHAT THE PROJECT ENTAILED: For Part 1, he recorded 150 children’s books for nurses to play using iPads that Brendan provided. The idea came from NICU nurses, who told him the sound of human voices is soothing to their young patients. Part 2 was to recruit quilters to make special covers for the NICU’s incubators. “There was a shortage of quilt coverings back when I was a newborn in the NICU,” Brendan says. “I asked about this during my first meeting at Children’s, and the big need was still there.”

HOW HE FOUND HIS READERS: Getting volun- teer readers was easy: Brendan’s friends, fellow Scouts and adults  associated  with his troop pitched in to record books in a makeshift studio he set up at his church.

The 40-plus hours of raw recordings needed plenty of editing; fortunately, a troop parent had expertise and volunteered to help.

HOW HE FOUND HIS QUILTERS: Finding quilters was a bit tougher. “From the clerk at the grocery store to the parents at the soccer field to the halftime break at a [New England] Patriots football game, we asked everyone,” Brendan says. He ended up  receiving  about 50 quilts from Maine to North Carolina, and they are still coming in.

Brendan Sullivan records audiobooks for Boston Children’s Hospital. Assistant Scoutmaster David Hoskyns reads. Darlene Salvatore, certified Child Life Specialist at the hospital, stands with one of the donated quilts. Grace Huddleston flips through pages to read.

Brendan Sullivan organized a drive for quilt covers and audiobooks for newborns in the NICU at Boston Children’s Hospital, where Brendan spent the beginning of his life.

NOT PICKING FAVORITES: “They are all my favorite,” Brendan says of the quilts. “They were all made with love and care by some very special individuals who donated their time, talent and craftsmanship to help some very special children.”

THE NICU-EAGLE CONNECTION: Each quilt

includes a patch memorializing Brendan’s project, and families are invited to take a patch home with them. “I want the parents currently in the NICU to know this was part of an Eagle Scout project done by someone who was once where their child is today,” he says.

MANY HAPPY RETURNS: During the course of his project, Brendan had a chance to meet many NICU staff members. “They all welcomed me in as a Scout but also as a NICU graduate,” he says. “During my visits, I was introduced to several of my nurses — the same nurses who cared for me as a baby. It was very emotional for all of us.”

Copyright permission received.  Eagles Call Summer 2018, The official magazine for Eagle Scouts.

We are happy to report names have been chosen for the Mayflower Council districts.

The process, as outlined by the VP of Operations included each of the district key 3 to submit 3 names to be reviewed and approved by the VP of Operations and the Marketing Committee.

The following names are effective immediately:

Blue District = Headwaters

Purple = Post Road

Green = Metacomet

Orange = Sachem

Tan = Cranberry Harbors

Updating unit pins on BeAScout is an important step in helping prospective Scouts and their families get in touch with units in your council.

BeAScout is open for units to indicate boy-only (default), family pack, or girl-only AND the date that they will begin accepting female applications.

1. Log in to your My.Scouting account; select Menu at the top left
2. From the drop-down menu, select your unit
3. Select Organization Manager
4. Select the Settings tab
5. Scroll to Family Scouting
6. If remaining boy-only, do nothing (this is the default setting); otherwise, select girls only or boys and girls
7. Enter the date that the unit will be welcoming girls.
8. Click Commit

For a pdf with instructions, click here.

The Marlborough and Canton Service Centers will be closed on Monday, May 28th in honor of Memorial Day.

Do you know Roland Cloutier? Roland is the Squanto Camp Ranger who has always kept the camp top notch and ready for all of our scouts year round. Please join us as we wish him the best of luck on his retirement.

Register Today To Attend

The Mayflower Council is proud to announce the 2017 Downey Campership Fund recipients for having the largest number of scouts attending Camp Squanto during the 2017 Camp Season.  2017 was a very competitive year with 2 units splitting the award as they both had the same number of youth attending camp.  As a result, both units have received $500.00 to assist in funding their 2018 camping season.  The units are:

Troop 126 Franklin, Christopher Botchis, Scoutmaster and

Troop 9 Weymouth, Philip Bartel, Scoutmaster

Please be certain to extend them your congratulations for a very successful 2017 Camp Season.

Craig D. McKenna

VP-Endowment

Mayflower Council, Inc.  BSA

On May 8th a joint statement was released by the LDS church and the Boy Scouts of America that outlined the strategy the LDS church has established to develop a worldwide youth program to serve its families. Because of this new program, the LDS church has decided to end its relationship as a chartered organization effective December 31, 2019.

For those families who are currently active in a unit chartered to a LDS church and want to continue your scouting journey after 2019, we wanted to let you know our volunteers and staff in each district will be there to help facilitate that for your family.

Official National Boy Scouts of America Statement:

The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) deeply appreciates the long-standing relationship we’ve had with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as a chartered organization. While Scouting remains a beloved program for many LDS families, the Church has decided to pursue programming that helps it meet the needs of their increasingly global membership and will no longer charter units after December 31, 2019. We jointly express our gratitude to the thousands of Scout leaders who have selflessly served over the years in Church-sponsored Scouting units and wish the Church all the best as it prepares to introduce the new program in 2020. There are many religiously-affiliated programs that are offered alongside Scouting, and as such, we are confident that many LDS Scouting families will go on to enjoy Scouting for years to come – continuing the legacy of LDS youth who have become Eagle Scouts and community leaders. For LDS families who want to continue the tradition of Scouting beyond 2019, the BSA will ensure a smooth transition to community-sponsored units that will welcome youth previously served by LDS-sponsored units. At the same time, the Boy Scouts of America is excited about our future and the opportunity to grow by providing families more options for their children to benefit from the incredible character-building experiences we provide. On background, approximately 425,000 youth in the LDS Church are served by the Cub Scout and Boy Scout programs. As one of the nation’s largest and most prominent values-based youth development organizations, the Boy Scouts of America is deeply heartened by the commitment of our many chartered partners whose ongoing commitment to Scouting enables us to serve about 2.3 million youth each year. 

The BSA Launches Historic ‘Scout Me In’ Campaign Inviting Girls and Boys to Experience Adventures Through a Cub Scout’s Point of View

‘Scouts BSA’ Also Unveiled as the Name of the Program for Older Boys and Girls to Ensure All Youth Are Welcome and Can See Themselves in Scouting

Irving, Texas – May 2, 2018 – The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) made history today by unveiling the new Scout Me In campaign that features girls, as well as boys, in its iconic Cub Scout program for the first time. Starting this summer, all kids are invited to say, “Scout Me In,” as they join the fun, adventure and character-building opportunities found in Cub Scouts. The campaign presents an energizing Scouting experience that speaks to kids by putting them in the middle of the action. It also engages parents who are looking for ways to make the most of the time they have with their kids and help them to be Prepared. For Life.

The Scout Me In creative shifts the perspective by showing what it’s like to be a Scout from a kid’s point of view. Instead of simply showing Scouts participating in activities, the campaign brings the young viewer into the middle of the action – from fishing, biking and canoeing to launching rockets and making slime – where they get even closer to the experiences that Scouting brings to life.

“Cub Scouts is a lot of fun, and now it’s available to all kids,” said Stephen Medlicott, National Marketing Group Director of Boy Scouts of America. “That’s why we love ‘Scout Me In’ – because it speaks to girls and boys and tells them, ‘This is for you. We want you to join!’”

The Scout Me In campaign celebrates the BSA’s expansion to serve families and welcome girls and boys into Scouting in communities across the country. It reinforces that the mission and core values in the Scout Oath and Scout Law are welcoming, inclusive and foundational for both young men and women. Since announcing the BSA’s historic decision to welcome girls into Scouting, more than 3,000 girls across the nation have already enrolled in the BSA’s Early Adopter Program and are participating in Cub Scouts ahead of the full launch later this year.

“As we enter a new era for our organization, it is important that all youth can see themselves in Scouting in every way possible. That is why it is important that the name for our Scouting program for older youth remain consistent with the single name approach used for the Cub Scouts,” said Michael Surbaugh, Chief Scout Executive of the Boy Scouts of America. “Starting in February 2019, the name of the older youth program will be ‘Scouts BSA,’ and the name of our iconic organization will continue to be Boy Scouts of America.”

The new Scout Me In recruitment campaign and creative approach was created by award-winning Dallas agency Johnson & Sekin, who also led efforts in the naming process supporting Scouts BSA. The Cub Scout and Scouts BSA program launch, led by Golin, will encompass a fully integrated strategy that spans paid, owned and earned channels.

“Scouting is deeply woven into the fabric of American life,” said Chris Sekin, Managing Partner of Johnson & Sekin. “It is a privilege to work with the organization to usher in its newest era that now includes all of our country’s youth and families.”

“We are excited to partner with the BSA to expand its impactful programs that are relevant to all families,” said Caroline Dettman, Golin’s Chief Creative and Community Officer. “We are thrilled that the mission and goal of the BSA’s programs to instill character and leadership is now a powerful promise for boys and girls alike.”

About the Boy Scouts of America

The Boy Scouts of America provides the nation’s foremost youth program of character development and values-based leadership training, which helps young people be “Prepared. For Life.®” The Scouting organization is composed of nearly 2.3 million youth members between the ages of 5 and 21 and approximately 960,000 volunteers in local councils throughout the United States and its territories. For more information on the Boy Scouts of America, please visit www.scouting.org.