Letters

Venturers loved winning recipe

Your March-April 2005 article on the campfire cuisine recipe contest was timed perfectly for my Venturing crew's mountain biking outing last weekend. We tried the Blade Blackie's Poison Peppers, and it was delicious and extremely easy to make (although the recipe as given only fed six large and very hungry Venturers).

Keith Angerman
Advisor, Venturing Crew 007
Corte Madera, Calif.

The March-April 2005 issue of Scouting magazine with the winning recipes in our "Campfire Cuisine" cooking contest is available at www.scoutingmagazine.org. Click on "Archive/Back Issues" and then on the cover of the March-April issue.


Confused about Venture patrols

As a longtime Scouter, I'm confused about the state of the Venture patrol program for older boys in troops. Is this program still official? If so, can boys in a Venture patrol earn the letter available to boys who are members of a Varsity Scout team?

Also, can Venture patrol members wear the dark green Venturing shirt? I have seen some Scouts wearing the shirt with red shoulder loops.

Michael Brown
Boca Raton, Fla.

A Venture patrol for boys 13 to 17 is an optional patrol within a troop; a Varsity Scout team is a stand-alone unit for boys 14 through 17. Only Varsity Scouts can earn the program's Varsity letter and Denali Award, although Varsity Scouts also can work toward the Eagle Scout rank and achieve other Scout awards and recognitions.

Varsity Scouts wear traditional Boy Scout uniforms with a special identification strip above the right pocket and blaze orange shoulder loops. The dark green shirt is only worn by members of a Venturing crew, the BSA program for young men and women age 14 through 20.

The Scoutmaster Handbook's (BSA No. 33009B) Chapter 13 and The Boy Scout Handbook's (No. 33105) Chapter 18 provide details about Venture patrols and Varsity Scouting.


Knot is not recommended

In the May-June 2005 Letters column, one of the responses for "Help for disappearing slides" suggested tying a knot in the neckerchief.

This could pose a choking hazard for active Scouts in uniform. The purpose of the slide is to hold the neckerchief and we discourage our Scouts from tying the neckerchief in place.

Carol Lynch
Webelos Den Leader, Pack 3102
Bainbridge Township, Ohio


'Outstanding' article and photographs

The article with the accompanying photographs in the March-April 2005 issue about the journey to the Grand Canyon's "Havasu Heaven" was outstanding.

I recently returned from Supai Village [where] I worked in the IHS (Indian Health Service) clinic...[and] one of my grandsons went on a hike to Havasu Falls last spring and really enjoyed it.

The article information was clear, precise, and accurate. You captured the spirit of the area.

Marvin Call, M.D.
Albuquerque, N.M.


A great Scouting contributor

As I reflect on my 50-plus years of Scouting, my earliest memory related to the W. K. Kellogg Foundation's support of Scouting goes back to 1951, at the T. Ben Johnston Boy Scout Camp on Sherman Lake, Mich. The camp, like the Battle Creek Youth Building, was part of W. K. Kellogg's investment in his community, to provide facilities for local youth programs.

Over the years, the Kellogg Foundation has helped many Scout programs that teach leadership and volunteerism at the council and national levels.

Locally, several of W. K. Kellogg's grandsons were Eagle Scouts, and Dr. Russ Mawby, a past CEO of the Kellogg Foundation, was named a Distinguished Eagle Scout in 1973. Many other foundation employees have been involved as Scouts, Scout leaders, or have family members who participated in Scouting programs.

One of my biggest joys was receiving the BSA Silver Beaver Award for service to youth within a council. Knowing that in 1931 W. K. Kellogg also received this award made the honor even more important to me.

W. K. Kellogg believed in helping people help themselves, and the youth of our country are living examples of what happens when that belief is put into action.

James R. Hazel Jr.
Battle Creek, Mich.

Editor's note: The above was adapted from the "Memories" section of the W. K. Kellogg Foundation's Web site, 75.wkkf.org. Individuals submitted recollections of the influence of the philanthropic life of W. K. Kellogg through programs, including Scouting. Kellogg established the foundation in 1930 with instructions to his board of trustees to "Use my money as you please, so long as it promotes the health, happiness, and well-being of children." In August, the foundation celebrated its 75th anniversary in Battle Creek, Mich.

Top of Page


September 2005 Table of Contents


Copyright © 2005 by the Boy Scouts of America. All rights thereunder reserved; anything appearing in Scouting magazine or on its Web site may not be reprinted either wholly or in part without written permission. Because of freedom given authors, opinions may not reflect official concurrence.