Simsbury Troop 175

Never hike alone in snow conditions

Recently an Eagle Scout from Massachusetts was climbing Mt. Washington in New Hampshire when he became lost for three days and relied on his boy scout training until rescue parties sent looking for him located him and brought him to safety.

His words of advice after the ordeal "Never hike alone in snow conditions".

Just think what could have happened if he was not a scout with survival skills.

Click the link to read the entire article:

Download Lost Scout

Most Merit Badges

"Eagle Scout John Stanford from Limestone, NY earned the most merit badges ever. The total was 142 and he had a total of 8 silver palms by his 18th birthday."

This accomplishment will never be matched since there are only 121 merit badges now. I had an Eagle Scout in the '90s that earned every Merit Badge that was offered, but that was only 126.

The most ever offered in one year was 127 in 1975 and again in 1987. John Stanford must have joined in 1970 or 1971 or 1972. Those were the only years where a person could earn over 140 badges, and then only if one included twice the ones that were basically name changes like:

• Animal Science / Animal Industry
• Citizenship in the World / World Brotherhood
• Environmental Science / Conservation of Natural Resources
• Fish & Wildlife Management / Wildlife Management
• Personal Management / Personal Finances
• Textile / Textiles
• Traffic Safety / Automotive Safety

Since there was no numbering scheme for merit badges until 1987, earning a merit badge that just had the name changed was OK. Today, one can only do it if the new name has a new number, for example:

Snow Sports (134) is different than Skiing (104) so they both can be earned, but Automotive Maintenance (127) is the same as Auto Mechanics (127), and Water Sports (115) is the same as Waterskiing (115) so they can only be earned once.

Source: "Troop, Crew and Pack 179, Virginia Beach, VA"

Troop 175 Most Merit Badges

According to the Troop database,which goes back to 1997, Eagle scout Jeff Nagy has the record for the most merit badges earned in the troop with 30. He is followed by Gavin Schultz with 29 and Eric Meischeid with 28.

Of the scouts currently active with the Troop, Eagle scout Mike Vallen has 28. 

Arthur M. & Berdena King Eagle Scout Scholarship

Open to all Eagle Scouts who are currently registered in an active unit and have not reached their 19th birthday during the year of application.   (The application year is the calendar year, 01 Jan. to 31 Dec.)   The year that Eagle was awarded is not restricted.  College plans do not need to be completed in order to receive the cash scholarship.  Three cash scholarship awards are given: As the National First Place winner - $8,000.00; Runner-up - $4,000.00; 2nd runner-up - $2,000.00.  You may apply more than one year if you meet the age requirements but no more than $8,000.00 total may be granted to any one Eagle Scout.

Entrants need to complete only one application -- the one for the chapter competition.  If it is a winner it is then used for the state competition, and if it is a winner again it is used for the national competition.

The application consists of:
1. The two page application form
2. The Four Generation ancestor chart.
3. The 500 word essay

You can see additional details and the required forms at The National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution Website.

National Wildlife Photo Contest

We are now accepting entries to our 39th annual contest. Cash prizes totaling $25,000 plus other gifts will be awarded to the winners in seven categories in three separate divisions: Professional, Amateur and Youth. The deadline is July 20, 2009!

The National Wildlife Photo Contest is open to ALL photographers worldwide who are at least 13 years of age. The contest ends on July 20, 2009. There are 3 divisions and 7 categories. Up to 20 photos can be entered for a $15 fee. Only digital image files are acceptable and they must be uploaded to our website. Cash prizes totaling $25,000 plus other prizes will be awarded.

The judges are looking for photos in the following categories:

1. New Category for 2009: Global Warming and Wildlife

2. Mammals - Portraits and Behavior

3. Birds - Portraits and Behavior

4. Other Wildlife - Portraits and Behavior (includes underwater life, reptiles, amphibians, insects, spiders and more)

5. Backyard Habitats - Wild Creatures, Native Plants and Natural Settings in Your Yard

6. Connecting People and Nature - People Enjoying the Outdoors

7. Landscapes and Plant Life - Scenic Views and Native Plants in Wild Settings

History of Merit Badges

1910 BSA Handbook (called the Book of Organization) by Chief Scout, Ernest Thompson Seton, had 14 "Badges of Merit". They were:  Ambulance, Clerk, Cycling, Electrician, Fireman, Gardener, Horseman, Marksmanship, Master-of-Arms, Musician, Pioneer, Seamanship, Signaler, and Stalkers.

The 1911 Handbook carried over all the 1910 Badges of Merit except the Master-at-Arms Badge of Merit. The Master-at-Arms Badge involved mastering 3 of the following combat skills: single stick, boxing, ju jitsu, wrestling, quarterstaff and fencing.  The 1911 Handbook changed the term to Merit Badge and changed the names of the other 13 merit badges:

There were a total of 57 merit badges in the 1911 handbook.  These included the 13 above that were carried over and the following which were added:  Agriculture, Angling, Archery, Architecture, Art, Astronomy, Athletics, Automobiling, Aviation, Bee Farming, Blacksmithing, Bugling, Business, Camping, Carpentry, Chemistry, Civics, Conservation, Cooking, Craftsmanship, Dairying, First Aid to Animals, Forestry, Handicraft, Interpreting, Invention, Leather Working, Life Saving, Machinery, Masonry, Mining, Ornithology, Painting, Pathfinding, Personal Health, Photography, Plumbing, Poultry Farming, Printing, Public Health, Scholarship, Sculpture, Surveying, Swimming, and Taxidermy.

Merit badges are designed to emphasize the ability “to do” rather than just knowledge.  They were designed to “introduce a boy to life” including careers , hobbies, and other skills.  Of the 121 current merit badges, 27 remain from the group of 57 original merit badges and 94 have been introduced since then. An additional 88 merit badges were created after 1911 but were subsequently dropped. So, all together, there have been a total of 239 different merit badges.

A director of the Boy Scout division of the BSA stated at a Boy Scout Program conference at Philmont that a merit badge is never officially dropped. They are just omitted from all literature, the cloth badge is not made, and there are no books published. Apparently someone that has the most recent set of requirements can use them. I am not sure how one goes about getting an approved counselor. That could be a problem, however that hasn't stopped some people. A case in point is the Rabbit Raising Merit Badge that was dropped in 1993. BSA records indicate that 49 Rabbit Raising Merit Badges were earned in 2003. Using a realistic approach, my definition for the final year for a merit badge is the last year it appears in BSA literature as a valid merit badge even though it may be earned many years after that.

Most of the very popular merit badges are the Eagle Scout rank required badges. Approximately 50,000 of each of these are earned each year. Other popular merit badges include camp handicrafts such as leatherwork and carving; popular camp activities such as archery, rifle shoting, canoeing, indian lore, and wilderness survival; and others that are frequently done as a troop such as fingerprinting,

In looking at the list some general conclusions can be drawn. Slightly more Scout are into Music than Sports, 15,114 to 10,968. There is a lot of interest in the classic Scouting skills of first aid, swimming, lifesaving, cooking, climbing, and nature study. Nature study accounts for 10 of the more popular merit badges: Environmental Science, Mammal Study, Fishing, Geology, Nature, Weather, Forestry, Soil and Water Conservation, and Reptile Study. Hiking has dropped to the middle of the pack along with Cycling, Scholarship and Reading.

When a new merit badge is adopted, usually the least popular merit badge is in danger of being dropped.

Source: Steven Henning:

Simsbury Land Trust Photo Winners

Two members of Simsbury Boy Scout Troop 175 were recently recognized at the Simsbury Land Trust Annual Dinner for their award winning photography.

Scout Isaac Peacock accepted 3rd place in the student emerging artist category for his landscape photo.

Assistant Scoutmaster Bill Rice won Honorable Mention in the Landscape category for his photo "Wild Water at Welden".

Knife Quiz

There's an old Nordic saying: "A man without a knife is a man without a life." The knife is the one essential survival tool. Know how to use a knife and you can spark a fire, whittle the trigger for a deadfall trap, cut saplings to shelter from the storm. Not to mention skin a deer. But how many of us can call on basic knifecraft skills in a crisis? How many of us understand blade design? The right kinds of steel for the right kind of knife? Let's slice to the heart of the matter. Most of us do little with our knives beyond trim our fingernails, fillet crappies for the pan, and field dress the occasional buck. Chances are your knife skills are rusty. But maybe not. By taking this test, you can find out how much you know. More important, you can find out what you don't know. Study up, and you can turn a dull edge into a keen one.

Go to the 20 question Knife Quiz