Serving: Blind Brook, Bronxville, Eastchester, Edgemont, Harrison, Larchmont, Mamaroneck, Mt. Vernon, New Rochelle, Pelham, Port Chester, Purchase, Rye, Rye Neck, Scarsdale, Tuckahoe

Cub Scout Summer Camps Videos

Upcoming Events Council May 23: Thunderbird Program Comm 23: Training Comm 25-27: Read & Clear Lake Closed 27: Memorial Day 28: OA Executive Committee 29: Public Speaking Merit Badge 31-6/2: Cub Family Camping Weekend 31-6/2: Eager Beaver Weekend June 2: Firematic Exploring / Venture Day 5: Eagle Scout Recognition Dinner 7-9: Eager Beaver Weekend 7-9: Trail to Eagle Session #2 of 3 7-9: Cub Family Camping Weekend 9: JCOS Committee 9: BALOO Training 14: Sporting Clay Shoot 15: Monster Jam 17: Executive Board at Durland 22: Edge Training 22: Computers Pin & Belt Loop 23-29: Staff Week at Read 23: Nature Merit Badge 24: Council Commissioners 27-7/3: Cub Day Camp at Durland 30-7/6: Boy Scout Summer Camp July 4: Independence Day Holiday 7-13: Summer Camp Week 2 at Read 8-12: Boy Scout Day Camp at Durland 8-12: Cub Day Camp at Iona Prep and Durland 13: Cinematography Merit Badge 14-20: Summer Camp Week 3 at Read 15-19: Boy Scout Day Camp at Durland 15-24: National BSA Jamboree 15-19: Cub Day Camp at Iona Prep and Durland 21-27: Summer Camp Week 4 at Read Algonquin District June 21: District Recognition Dinner See Council Calendar for further events

Units on the Web Packs 2 Rye 4 Edgemont 4 Pelham Manor 5 Bronxville 6 New Rochelle 6 Harrison 6 Crestwood 7 Tuckahoe 8 Pelham 9 Harrison 11 Rye 33 Larchmont 353 Eastchester 440 Scarsdale Troops 1 Crestwood 1 Bronxville 2 Scarsdale 2 Rye 2 Bronxville 4 Bronxville 4 Scarsdale 5 Bronxville 6 New Rochelle 8 Edgemont 11 New Rochelle 15 New Rochelle 60 Scarsdale 99 Scarsdale 353 Eastchester Add a Unit

Algonquin District Annual Adult Recognition Barbeque
June 21
6 p.m.

Knights of Columbus
327 Westchester Avenue, Port Chester, NY
TICKETS: $20 per person

Please join the Algonquin District Committee as we honor and celebrate the outstanding volunteers that make our district great!

Good food, good times, good fellowship.
District Award of Merit - - - Commissioner's Award of Excellence

Register and Pay Online

Update an Existing Registration

Gordon Hamilton Memorial Cook-Off
Postponed until September 14

Ward Pound Ridge Reservation

Gordon Hamilton, Scoutmaster of Troop 60 Scarsdale, passed away in July 2012. Algonquin District is dedicating its 2013 Spring Event to Gordon's memory with an Iron Chef-style Cook-off. Patrols from Algonquin troops are invited to cook up their best camp meal recipes (including a Dutch oven Dessert) in Gordon's honor at Ward Pound Ridge Reservation on May 4, 2013. Cook-off Rules are attached and prizes will be awarded.

Chief Cook-off Judge will be former Troop 353 Life Scout Tom Sommer, 2010 graduate of Culinary Institute of America, Bachelor's degree in Culinary Arts and Restaurant Management. Tom is presently a junior sous chef at Abigail Kirsch Catering in Tarrytown NY. Abigail Kirsch's venues include Tappan Hill Mansion, The New York Botanical Garden, Pier Sixty and The Lighthouse.

In addition, please note that the Gordon Hamilton Camp Read Scholarship Fund, established in memory of Gordon's longstanding and active involvement in Scouting, continues to seek contributions. Many contributions have been received, and we thank all of you who have already made a difference. In order to finalize the arrangements for the Fund and ensure that the Fund lives on in perpetuity, under Council policy the Fund must total at least $25,000 by the end of this year. We have come a long way towards that goal but additional funds need to be raised.

Cook-0ff Registrations are due by April 29, 2013. $12 per person includes cook-off entry fee, event patch and modest contribution to the scholarship fund. Additional contributions can be made by check to "The Westchester Putnam Council/Gordon Hamilton Camp Read Scholarship Fund" and sent to Westchester-Putnam Council, BSA, 41 Saw Mill River Road, Hawthorne, NY 10532.

Gordon Hamilton Memorial Cook-Off Flyer and Registration Form
Ward Pound Ridge Reservation Map

Akela Campfire Cuboree
May 18-19, 2013
Camp Alpine, Alpine, NJ

The Akela Campfire Cuboree is May 18-19, at Camp Alpine. Activities will run from noon-5:PM. Saturday supper will be served in the Dining Hall. Akela's Campfire will be at 7:30. Sunday breakfast will be served in the Dining Hall at 8:15.

Registration is limited to the first 350 people, first-come, first-served. Packs must register as a whole, through their pack committee, by May 4. Individual families do not register. The pack committee uses the linked registration form. No hardcopy registration form is necessary. Payment can be made by credit card or the pack account. Note that only "authorized persons" can use the pack account option.

Security wristbands are required for both youth and adults to access the camp, activity stations and dining hall. The wristbands will be distributed to your pack representatives on Monday, May 6, at Iona Prep, 255 Wilmot Road, New Rochelle (Roundtable location). Each pack must make arrangements for someone to collect the wristbands that evening, between 7:PM and 8:30, and then make sure the wristbands are distributed to your pack's attendees before anybody leaves for Camp Alpine. Additionally, on May 6, experienced Cub Scouters will be on hand to answer questions and/or offer advice on any Cub Scouting topics or issues that anyone would like discuss.

For more information, contact Paul Knudsvig: PDKnudsvigaol.com.

Akela Campfire Cuboree Registration and Flyer

Online Registration Closed 5/17/2013

Roundtable Handouts
In an effort to save paper and deliver information in a more efficient manner roundtable agenda and handouts are now being made available through a downloadable PDF, below.

Southern Districts Roundtable Handouts - April 2013
Southern Districts Roundtable Handouts - March 2013
Southern Districts Roundtable Handouts - February 2013
Southern Districts Roundtable Handouts - January 2013
Handouts from Leave No Trace/Low Impact Cooking Presentation - January 2013 (zip)
Southern Districts Roundtable Handouts - December 2012

Roundtables
Roundtables for Algonquin and Mohican District Scouters are held the first Monday of the month at Iona Prep School, 255 Wilmot Road, New Rochelle, N Y. beginning at 7:30 p.m. Each Pack and Troop is asked to have one or more leaders in attendance. Why? Because the Roundtable is when the theme for the next month is going to be discussed, ideas exchanged, announcements made about future District and Council activities, leader training courses, and recruiting ideas for units. Adult leaders and parents are always welcome.

Unit Service is Provided by the District Commissioner Staff
Volunteers called Unit Commissioners provide direct coaching and consultation for unit adults to help ensure the success of every Scouting unit. The most important thing a commissioner does for a unit is to develop a close relationship with unit leaders to prove that somebody cares about him or her. This person is the connecting link between the Boy Scouts of America and the unit leader. This person does at least three things each month for each unit:

1. He or she visits a unit meeting or the unit committee meeting and stays long enough to give and take information about the unit program.

2. He or she phones each unit leader between unit meeting visits to see if help is needed.

3. The commissioner makes a thorough appraisal of each unit’s needs for successful operation and seeks out the resources of the district to meet those needs.

Additionally, the unit commissioner helps units prepare for charter renewal and leads them through the process qualification for the Journey to Excellence.
Currently there are 12 people who are registered Commissioners in the district. If your unit needs some help or guidance, District Commissioner Henry Wilson may be contacted and he will get one of these unit commissioners to help support you. The District Commissioner's staff meets the first Wednesday of the month.

The District Committee Carries Out Four Functions of District Operations
The Algonquin District has a group of over 20 people assigned to carry out the following four operational functions to support the program of the units in the district. These are Membership, Finance, Program, and Unit Service. Each of these functions has sub committees that carry out tasks and activities designed to ensure the growth and success of Scouting units within the district territory. A quick summary of each function is:

Membership: The Membership function strives for growth through the organization of new Scouting units and growth through new members joining existing units.
Finance: The Finance function sees that the district provides its share of funds to the total council operating budget through the Friends of Scouting campaign.
Program: The Program function concentrates on helping Scouting units with camp promotion, special activities including community service, training adult volunteers, and youth advancement and recognition.
Unit Service: The Unit Service function provides direct support to each unit within the district.

Conservation Resource Guide
Conservation is a basic part of the BSA mission. Scouting embraces Leave No Trace, requires conservation-related activities for rank advancement, and encourages conservation service projects to the community. The new Conservation Resource Guide identifies Westchester-Putnam agencies engaged in nature and conservation activities. Organized by District, the Guide is intended to enable ‘one-stop’ access for any Westchester-Putnam Scouts and Scouters seeking sites for troop conservation projects, nature-related advancements, or outdoor activities (including William Hornaday Award, Leave No Trace Award, Boy Scout Rank Advancement Nature Requirements, and Eagle Service Projects).

Webelos to Scout Transition
It should be the goal of the Cubmaster and Webelos Leaders to graduate every Webelos Scout into a Boy Scout troop. The key to accomplishing this is to begin promoting Boy Scouting when Cub Scouts are still in their Tiger, Wolf and Bear dens, and to sell the sizzle of the great outdoors. Scouting should be viewed as an ongoing adventure, and the progression should be as normal as moving from elementary school to middle school.

Boy Scout troops should assign an Assistant Scoutmaster or a troop committee member to be responsible for new Scouts, which would include developing a relationship with the Cubmaster and the Webelos Leaders. This person serves as a resource during Webelos overnight activities and builds enthusiasm among boys and their parents for the exciting challenges that await them in Boy Scouting.

Training
Would you send your son to school on a bus whose driver was not trained? Would you feel comfortable knowing that your child's teacher wasn't trained? Of course not! Why don't we hold our Den Leaders, Cubmasters, and Scoutmasters to the same standard. While there are literally hundreds of possible training courses that you can take in Scouting, to be considered a TRAINED leader you must complete two courses, New Leader Essentials and the Specific training for your position.   Basic Adult Leader Outdoor Orientation (BALOO) training is for any Cub Scout leader with a desire to plan and carry out any outdoor experience for the pack.

Commissioner Corps
The District Commissioner's staff meets the first Wednesday of the month at Iona Prep, 255 Wilmot Road, New Rochelle at 7:30 p.m.

A unit commissioner is a friend to the Scout unit - troop, pack or crew - and provides information and assistance to the Unit Committee. Often, a unit commissioner is someone who was once involved in a unit, and now has time to share their experience with other Scouters in their communities. Commissioners provide many services to the units they serve. Their primary responsibility is to be the liaison between the unit and the district. They will occasionally attend committee meetings, and also attend unit meetings at other times. They will always make themselves available for ideas and will be a resource for help and guidance.