13 Spring Dsa Newsletter Final

Embed Size (px)

Citation preview

  • 7/28/2019 13 Spring Dsa Newsletter Final

    1/8

    Bill Roth: pathways to service

    In late August, Bill Roth picked up Larry McColloughat Philmont Scout Ranch after his staff contract ended.Headed to the 1954 National OA Conference, they stillhad a full day of driving to get to Laramie, Wyoming.A student at Wake Forest, the previous year Larryserved as chief of Occoneechee Lodge, based inRaleigh, North Carolina. Receiving the Vigil Honor onlythe year before, and one of the rst youth recipientsin the state, he embraced a special responsibility,that being to perform the Vigil Honor ceremony atthe conference. The long hours on the road affordedpreparation time reciting the lines of the chief. Larryshared, Im condent Bill suggested my selection

    for that job--and for my having been one of the rstyoung Vigils in our area. I didnt know about hisbackstage maneuvering, because that is the way heworked: putting some young person out front to getthe glory, while he worked quietly out of sight to get

    By Mac McLeanClass of 1988

    MaRTY TScHeTTeRClass of 1996

    things done. Such an example demonstrates one ofBill Roths paths to service.

    Born on January 12, 1929 in Hartsdale, New York,William Stanley Roth joined Troop 500 in New York Cityin 1942. Led by a crackerjack Scoutmaster, he excelled

    at the various leadership responsibilities. In 1944, thetroop attended Camp Manhattan the rst week of thesummer and Bill became an Ordeal member of Man-A-Hattin Lodge. At the end of the week the camp directorhired him for the dining hall staff for the remainder of theseason. Returning for ve more summers, he workedwith brothers Al Nichols (Class of 1940) and lodge chiefNoel Zakin (Class of 1975), earning Brotherhood, andprogressing into management roles. After graduation in1946, he enrolled at the Asheville-Biltmore College inNorth Carolina and got heavily involved in Tsali Lodgeand a local troop.

    Two years later he served as assistant campdirector at Camp Daniel Boone and in April 1949

    became the lodges rst Vigil Honor recipient withthe name The Great Warrior. Bill transferred to theUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the fallof 1948, nishing a degree in business administrationin May of 1950, and earned Eagle Scout in the fall.

    YEARS AGO

    75

    Arrowmen tradingpatches at the 1938National Lodge Meetingat Irondale ScoutReservation.

    YEARS AGO

    51

    In 1962 GamenowininkLodge 555 receiveda lodge charter thusallowing BSA membersoverseas to becomeArrowmen.

    YEARS AGO

    25

    In 1988, adult women

    become eligible or the

    OA. Kay Trick became the

    frst woman to serve on

    the national OA committe

    and the frst to receive th

    DSA in 2009.

    see ROTH, page

    William Wadsworth: champion of high adventure

    Throughout his professional Scouting career,William Hunter Wadsworth aimed to provide youth with

    the nest outdoor adventure experience possible. Billdeveloped a deep affection for the outdoors growingup as an adolescent in Fulton, New York, near thesoutheastern shore of Lake Ontario. His maternal

    By MaRTY TScHeTTeRClass of 1996

    lineage owned the Hunter Arms Company, a well-knownsporting arms maker from 1899-1950, providing anearly interest in camping and hunting with both gun andbow. His father served on the Oswego County Councilcamping committee, which developed Camp Twelve

    Pines, where Bill and his brother Robert worked onstaff. Both earned Eagle Scout, Bill in 1930.Born on March 25, 1916, Bill attended Syracuse

    University, earning varsity letters on the swim and

    PRESEntEd fOR diStinGuiShEd SERvicE tO thE ORdER SincE 1940

    thE SilvER ARROwhEAdvOluME 6, iSSuE 3 | SPRinG 2013

    ORdER Of thE ARROw | bOY ScOutS Of AMERicA

    Bill Roth

    Three years later he nished all the coursework fa PhD in industrial relations, but in lieu of completinthe degree, he opted to enter professional Scoutin

    By the 1952 NOAC, Roths Scouting resume includestrong youthful leadership in two lodges and also Area 6A. At the conference he edited the newslette

    ski teams. As a senior he served as president of PUpsilon Fraternity before graduating in 1938 from thSyracuse University Maxwell School of Citizenship anPublic Affairs. While in college he worked at TanagLodge, a private coed camp in the Adirondacks. Th

    camp owner, Fay Welch, worked on the Syracusfaculty at the college of forestry and also as an importa

    see WaDSWORTH, page

  • 7/28/2019 13 Spring Dsa Newsletter Final

    2/8

    RAY cAPPNational Chairman, Class of 1973

    MichAEl thOMPSOnVice Chairman, Class of 2006

    Recognition and Awards

    cRAiG SAlAzARVice Chairman, Class of 1994

    Communications and Marketing

    clYdE MAYERDirector, Class of 1998

    MAtt dukEMAnOA Specialist, Class of 2004

    MAtt bROwnNational Chief

    JORdAn huGhESNational Vice Chief

    MARtY tSchEttEREditor, Class of 1996

    JEffREY St. cYRLayout Editor, Class of 2012

    ORdER Of thE ARROwbOY ScOutS Of AMERicA

    1325 West Walnut Hill LaneP.O. Box 152079

    Irving, Texas 75015-2079

    The Silver Arrowhead is distributed two timeseach year via electronic communication torecipients o the Order o the Arrow DistinguishedService Award. Articles, photographs, and updates

    may be sent to [email protected].

    lEAdERShiP

    1952 NOAC Alpha Phi Omega gathering at the University of Miami. Bill Roth, back row, secondfrom right. The Miami University Zeta Delta Chapter provided service led by past chapter presidentand Chairman of the Arrangements Committee Roy L. Henderson, who worked on the OA planningcommittee. They also manned a booth answering questions and distributing literature about thefraternity.

    ON THE COVER

    PA

    GE2

    -thESilvERARROwhEAd

    |ORdEROf

    thEARROw

    Do you have a letter fromE. Urner Goodman?

    1948 OA Handbook.

    The OA Archive is searching for copies oforiginal letters from E. Urner Goodman for use inactivities relating to the Orders 100th anniversary.Please let us know ifyou received a letter from

    our founder and would consider sharing. We not need the original. Please email the [email protected] for further informatand assistance.

    1954 NOAC by Dwight Bischel.

    1951 retirement photo. 1956 NOAC by Dwight Bischel.

  • 7/28/2019 13 Spring Dsa Newsletter Final

    3/8

    From the Chairman, Ray CappMy Brothers,

    This summer, the Order of the Arrowcontinues its century of service by supportingthe 2013 National Jamboree with 700 dedicatedstaff members. For the rst time in a generation,this gathering will start using a new site:The Summit-Bechtel Family Scout Reservenear Beckley, WV. Our Arrowmen will serveas Jamboree Trek Guides, Day of ServiceGuides, OA Indian Village staff and the OAService Corps, supporting a variety of new andtraditional events. This will stand as the largestOA Service Corps contingent since we rstsupported the jamboree in 1950.

    We are also beginning to plan the Orders100th anniversary, which will culminate atthe NOAC at Michigan State in 2015. You areall invited! We hope you can join what wehope to be 10,000 Arrowmen from across thecountry. This year, we asked lodges to sendin a rock, inscribed with their lodge name andheadquarter city which we will use to build anew Brotherhood Fireplace. Next year, eachlodge is asked to send in a 16x20 painting bya youth member to commemorate some aspect

    of their lodge history. Finally, in 2014, lodges willcomplete a thorough lodge history of the OA for

    their council. We hope you can see the display ofall these materials in Michigan.The Order of the Arrow is continuing its focus

    on helping lodges, chapters, and units succeed.We created and distributed in rapid succession thefollowing materials: Chapter Operations Guide,a new Troop Rep (and Adviser) program, an OAUnit of Excellence Award, Professional ScoutersGuidebook, Volunteer OA Advisers Guidebook,as well as a best practices repository for chapterand lodge ideas.

    The legacy you have left the OA is alive and well.

    Thank you for your pioneering work.

    Ray CappNational Chairman

    Why should I support the OA endowment right now?

    The National OA Endowment embodies manywonderful involvement opportunities for Arrowmen ofall ages and stages in life. Previously we mentionedthe Goodman Society, the recently introduced LegacyFellowship, and even the new OA credit card. Detailedinformation exists on the national OA website.

    I want to share a family situation that helps answerthe question, Why should I support the OA Endowmentright now? My Mom, Dad, and I became a part of theScouting family when I became a Cub Scout. Thisbegan what is now nearly a 50-year relationship withthe organization that we all love so much. My parentslived during the amazing generation that sacriced allof their own desires to support anything and everythingthat their kids wanted to do, or try in life.

    Mom served as a Den Mother, my Dad a Cubmaster,and then became a Scoutmaster a few years afterI joined Boy Scouts. He then went on to continueas Scoutmaster for another 30 years after I earnedEagle Scout and moved away for college. Mom and

    Dad continued spending their summers serving ascommissioners at Scout camps, when Dad wasntbusy attending jamborees or going on 50-milers withthe troop. In other words, Scouting endured throughouttheir lives, and they loved every minute of it. So whenit came time to prepare wills, and make determinationsabout their future nancial gifts, I expected that the

    By TOBY caPPSClass of 2009

    OA and Boy Scouts would remain a prominent rolein their plans.

    A few years ago, my wife and I attended theNational BSA Annual Meeting in Dallas, I received aphone call from a doctor telling me that Dad recentlyhad surgery and we needed to return to WashingtonState as soon as possible. Mom passed away a coupleof years earlier after a short battle with cancer, so Daddecided not to tell us that he scheduled prostate surgery

    while we focused on the meeting.The doctor explained he suffered a rare type of

    stroke during the surgery that caused total loss ofmemory and needed to be moved into an assisted livinghome immediately. As we arrived to see Dad for therst time, it certainly took us aback to realize that hehad no recollection about his past. This began a nearlyve-year journey, to where we are today, watching hislife completely changed by dementia. Nearly everyweek I think about my Scouting and Order of the Arrowexperiences and Dad has no recall of who I am or anyof our shared time in Scouting. My wife and I had totake over the handling of his nances, and realizedthat because of the sudden onset of the dementia, he

    never updated his will from decades ago to include hiswishes to honor the organization he spent the majorityof his life serving.

    The National OA Endowment provides so manywonderful ways to give future nancial support to theorganization we all love so much, and will assurethat these programs will continue to operate for

    generations to come. The scholarships, programand leadership opportunities we provide can onbe continued with the nancial support of each anevery one of us. Like so many things in my own lifit is always easy to say, Ill do that tomorrow, whe

    I have more time. Well, as my Dads story showoccasionally the perfect plans we made for our livedont always work out the way we intend. For the saof the generations of Arrowmen to come behind uI humbly ask you each to take the time today to sigon to the OA website at www.oa-bsa.org and pledgyour support. Thank you for all you do.

    Bob, Mabel, Toby, and Holly Capps, 1967.

  • 7/28/2019 13 Spring Dsa Newsletter Final

    4/8

    PA

    GE4

    -thESilvER

    ARROwhEAd

    |ORdEROfthEARROw

    Arrowmen serving Scouting and their communityNational OA Committeeman Dr. Chris Grove(Class

    of 2006) from Troy, Ohio was recently appointed to theboard of trustees of Edison Community College by theGovernor of Ohio.

    Jason Hood(Class of 1983) was recently namedthe Area Six President for the Southern Region.

    Randy Cline (Class of 1973) recently finishedserving as the Area Six President for the NortheastRegion. Recently nominated for the Northeast Region

    Commissioner, he will stand for election at the BSANational Annual Meeting.

    Tom Fitzgibbon(Classof 2009) was recentlypromoted to AssistantChief Scout Executive ofCouncil Support. Underhis leadership, the HumanResources Group, RegionalOperations Department,Youth Protection Team,and All Markets Strategy will

    report to Fitzgibbon. A Scout professional for 36 years,since 2004 he served as the Western Region Director.

    Dennis Prefontaine(Class of 1971) retired fromprofessional service thispast December after fourdecades of work. Mostrecently he served as theKnox Trail Scout executivebased in Framingham,

    Massachusetts. Inductedinto the Order in 1960, hereceived the Vigil Honor in1963. As a youth he servedas lodge chief, area chief in1967, and assisted a young man having a seizure andreceived the Life Saving Award.

    Former Western Region Chief Chad Wolver(Classof 2009) from Phoenix, Arizona currently serves in thePeace Corps in the Republic of South Africa workingin education and health. During the first two yearshe worked in an extremely impoverished community

    in rural KwaZula NatalProvince and lived iwthan all IsiZuli speakinghost family. Starting athird year, he is working tosupervise about 20 PeaceCorps volunteers in theeld by providing technicalsupport and coordinating

    training programs for newvolunteers. In additionChad works closely with HIV/AIDS education projec

    Former Northeast Region Chief Zieak McFarla(Class of 1996) from Fairport, New York currenworks as the athletic director at the American Schof Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia. Zieak served as an Trail Crew foreman the inaugural summer of 1995, tmoved to Sitka, Alaska to study natural resources adevelopment at Sheldon Jackson College. After collhe spent several years working in Petersburg, Alaand served as a Scoutmaster.Tom Fitzgibbon

    Dennis Prefontaine

    Chad Wolv

    Northeast Region team leads fundraising efforts tohelp camps affected by Hurricane Sandy

    Last fall, Superstorm Sandy caused lots of damagealong the East Coast without sparing Scout camps.Trees came down damaging buildings and structures,destroying program areas, and forced many campsto close for months to clean up and make plans forrebuilding.

    The Northeast Region Board met about 10 days

    after the storms and the Region Trust Fund committeeposed a challenge to the OA, that if we could raise$15,000 to aid cleanup efforts, the region would matchthe amount. Therefore we developed the ScoutsHelping Scouts campaign. We asked the regional trustcommittee to let the OA take the lead in this effort andmatch the money we raised and the region quicklyagreed.

    Emails, web posts, and messages through

    By MaRk cHiLuTTiClass of 1990

    Facebook began with amazing results. We askedpeople to make a donation, and also offered a nicepatch for $10, or a special silver bordered one for$100. We surpassed our initial goal to raise $20,000in about three weeks. Within no time we passed ournext benchmarks of $25,000, then $35,000, eventuallyraising over $59,000.

    We received over 250 nancial gifts of all sizesalong with notes of why people wanted to help, orwhat they did to raise the money. Checks came from

    individuals, packs, troops, lodges and sections. Peoplewere happy to help this great effort. The Black EagleLodge in the Transatlantic Council made the largestdonation, presenting a $5,000 check at the closing ofour NLS in Germany.

    As the fundraising wrapped up, lodges began toapply for grants up to $7,500 to help their camp. Lodgesand their council leadership worked together to select ameaningful project that could be done by the fall. The

    Hurricane Sandy damage at the Ten Mile River Scout Reservation operated by the Greater New York

    Councils.

    selection committee awarded money to all 10 lodthat applied.

    Pictures and details about those chosen canfound on the Northeast Region OA website at wwnortheast.oa-bsa.org.

    Thank you to everyone who responded and allowus to help those in need. We called the campaScouts Helping Scouts because that is who we

    and what we do.

  • 7/28/2019 13 Spring Dsa Newsletter Final

    5/8

    Roth joined the Occoneechee Council professionstaff in 1953 excelling as a district executive, directof exploring, eld director, director of eld service, andeputy Scout executive. Under his leadership withe lodge he continued to mentor youth Arrowmeincluding Willis Howard Williams (Class of 1961) anPat Caldwell, who both served on national plannincommittees. In addition, the lodge won national dancteam championships in 1954 and 1963. In Janua

    1964, his mentor Spurgeon Gaskin, serving as thRegion Six executive, appointed Roth as a depuregional executive. By late 1965, H. Roe Bartrequested Bill to serve as vice president of the AmericaHumanics Foundation, which Bartle had founded. ThRoth family moved to Kansas City and after a few yeamade a career change as a development ofcer forlocal hospital. Eventually he retired as the president a local Baptist Health Foundation.

    Bill Roth always chose the path of service. Aftnding enrichment as a Scout, his activity only increaseas an Arrowman. As a youth he worked at two summcamps, served three lodges, and helped mentyoung Arrowmen to develop into leaders. Along wi

    his OA service, he reorganized an APO chapter thprovided service to the college campus and greatcommunity. Instead of nishing a PhD he jumped inserving Americas youth as a professional ScouteThen when the American Humanics program startehe helped develop the curriculum that colleges wouuse to prepare people for public service in nonprotRoth walked many paths of service to others and his lserves as an example of servant leadership to all.

    Served as youngest APO National President

    helped judge Indian dancing, and at the end of theNOAC Bill received the Distinguished Service Awardrepresenting Tsali Lodge, one of the rst four youthfulrecipients at age 23.

    In 1953, Roth served as the Occoneechee lodgeadviser and several other key volunteer positions. ScoutExecutive Spurgeon Gaskin persuaded Bill to enter

    professional service. Spurgeon served as an importantmentor to Bill over the years and later served as his bestman when Bill married Hazel.

    Concurrent with his heavy involvement with theOrder as a young man, he also provided importantleadership with Alpha Phi Omega (APO), the nationalservice fraternity based on tenets of the Scout Oathand Law. Bill requested information from the nationalofce with interest to start a local APO chapter at theUniversity of North Carolina. The school previouslypossessed a chapter during the 1930s; however, duringWorld War Two the chapter slipped into inactive status.Shortly thereafter, Roth connected with a young womanwheelchair-bound from polio transferring to UNC from

    the University of Miami, who indicated that APO brothersin Miami helped her get to class. She wondered if theremight be some similar assistance at her new school.Roth agreed to help and initially organized a group offormer Asheville junior college students for the project.This endeavor engaged other former Scouts until thegroup achieved sufcient size to blossom into thereactivation of UNCs Rho Chapter of APO.

    At the time, current or former Scouts made up the

    ROTH, continued rom page 1 members of all APO chapters across the country. Thenew chapter launched many service projects, includingleading a campus United Way drive, assisting withemergency rst aid stations at UNC football games,and providing support staff for local council Boy Scoutsevents. Bill Roth and the Rho Chapter did their partby helping organize chapters at Wake Forest, theUniversity of Virginia, and East Tennessee State.As chapter president, on March 8, 1949, Roth wrote

    National OA Committee Chairman Kellock Hale (Classof 1946) that the Rho Chapter selected him for honorarymembership.

    Roth attended the December 1950 national APOconvention and broke barriers as the rst young manselected to serve as a member of the APO NationalExecutive Board. He continued in service on the boardand, in 1956, took over the role of rst vice president. In1958, Roth ascended to the top spot, becoming NationalPresident and serving until 1962.

    As National President, Roth followed in the footstepsof other pioneer Scouters who served, including APOfounder Frank Reed Horton and the longtime KansasCity Area Council Scout Executive H. Roe Bartle. In

    1962 at the end of his tenure as national president,Roth received the National APO Distinguished ServiceKey. Coincidentally, Sidney North (Class of 1956) alsoreceived this rare APO recognition that same year.North served many years on the national OA committeeas an APO liaison . Roth holds the distinction of servingon the National Executive Board of APO continuouslysince his rst selection nearly 63 years ago, making himeasily the longest tenured board member.

    1951 Camp Manhattan Staff OA members. Bill Roth located on second row, third from left. Courtesy of the Ten Mile River Scout Camp Museum.

  • 7/28/2019 13 Spring Dsa Newsletter Final

    6/8

    PA

    GE6

    -thESilvERARROwhEAd

    |ORdEROfthEARROw

    By the numbers: Professional Scouters

    Throughout our rich history professional Scoutershave provided valuable service and support to the Orderof the Arrow. Accordingly, a review of the professionalScouters having received the Distinguished ServiceAward seems appropriate.

    In the early years of the Order, virtually the entire

    grand lodge council and then the national executivecommittee were professional Scouters. Early Scoutexecutives realized the tremendous value of the Orderto their camp and council programs. Upon the fullintegration of the OA into the Boy Scouts of Americain 1948, the national OA committee was reconstitutedas a committee of volunteer Scouters with professionalsupport, much like other national committees in theBSA movement.

    With that background in mind, it should come as nosurprise that the rst 22 out of the 26 recipients from1940 to 1950 were pioneer professional Scouters.After 1950, once volunteers comprised the national OAcommittee and upon the introduction of the concept of

    national youth leadership, the DSA lists show a more

    By Mac McLeanClass of 1988

    ratable distribution among professional Scouters,volunteer adult leaders, and youth leaders.

    The presentations from 1952 to 1969 recognizedanother 118 recipients. Of those, 23 recipients providedmeaningful involvement as professional Scouters atthe time of their selection about 19 percent. Thenumber included Norman Wood and Dick Wilson,a pair of key youth OA leaders who also served asthe Orders rst two national professional advisers

    (then titled the national secretary of the OA). It alsoincluded Hal Cairney, then employed as a librarian forthe audiovisual service in the national ofce and nota traditional professional executive. It also includedHenry Henning of the supply division.

    In the 1970s, the OA recognized 14 professionals,including three sitting Chief Scout Executives, in itslist of 128 recipients, approximately 11 percent. Thatpercentage increased in the 1980s when OA recognized29 professionals out of the 179 recipients in that decade- just over 16 percent. For the 1990s the numberdecreased to 17 professional Scouters selected. With184 overall DSA recipients during the same period, thepercentage of professional Scouters selected in the

    1990s ended up at about 9 percent.

    From 2000 to present, a little more than a decathe Order recognized 273 additional DSA recipiegiving 27 to professional Scouters.

    Because this analysis only reviews persowho received the DSA while providing service aprofessional Scouter, this analysis does not incluanother group those young men who receivthe award and then later, because of their positexperience in the OA, began careers with the B

    Scouts of America. For example, Jeff Herrmann, fornational chief, has continued to serve with distincas a Scout executive in several councils.

    Professional Scouters involved in all facets of BSA and OA have richly and positively impacted program in many capacities and thus have amwarranted recognition with the award. The lisrecipients includes professional Scouters of all variefrom local executives to key leaders from PhilmScout Ranch and Northern Tier High Adventure Band includes 11 Chief Scout Executives. Interestinthree of the Chief Scout Executive recipients wconferred the award prior to serving in that positThe Order has beneted greatly from the outstand

    support over the years from professional Scouters

    The new Scout executive

    On May 1, 1927 E. Urner Goodman took the helmof Chicago Council as their new Scout executive, afterserving the previous 12 years in the same position forthe Philadelphia Council.

    Chicago presented an incredible professionalopportunity for Goodman because it consistentlypersisted as the largest council in the nation outside of

    New York City, where James E. West and the nationalheadquarters dominated the New York ofces. Thatmade Chicago the most signicant Scout executiveposition in the BSA. In those days, the council existedmore on Scoutings frontier. Direct contact with thenational ofce happened much less than it does today.Communication required an expensive long distancephone call or a long train ride, so most correspondenceremained limited to mail.

    Because of this, Chicago offered the propensityfor doing things their own way and getting away with it.Goodman changed that and brought the Chicago Councilinto national compliance, especially in camping. Priorto his arrival, the staff at Owasippe Scout Reservation

    placed Scouts into contingent troops matched by skilllevel and age. Individual Scouts could sign up forany session of camp. Goodman changed that to thetraditional system of Scouts attending summer camptogether with the friends of their home troop.

    Although co-founder Carroll A. Edson servedin Chicago as a eld executive in 1927, no reunionoccurred. Edson sought the position as Scout executiveand when the council executive board decided to hirefrom outside of the council he looked elsewhere. Edsonlanded the lead position in Hudson Council, Jersey City,New Jersey and began serving there later in the year.

    Goodmans four-year tenure as Scout executive inChicago ended on April 1, 1931. His success serving

    in Philadelphia and Chicago caught the attention of

    By BiLL TOPkiSClass of 2012

    Chief Scout Executive James E. West who appointedGoodman as the rst national director of program. Thisposition position ranked extremely high, one of thefour division director positions (business, operations

    and personnel being the others) that reported directly

    to the Chief Scout Executive. As Director of ProgrGoodman oversaw the establishment of the Cub Scand Exploring programs and supervised the writingthe rst Scout Field Guide. Goodman served in

    position until his retirement in 1951.

  • 7/28/2019 13 Spring Dsa Newsletter Final

    7/8

    following January he was gone. I think about our grefriendship often. What a loss. The Wadsworth ta les ainnite. Working in Portland I often met professionavisiting from the national ofce and they all had thestories about Bill Wadsworth.

    Bill Wadsworth passed away on January 1

    1991, his legacy continued with posthumous inductiointo the Archery Hall of Fame. In 1965, at the ftieanniversary of the Order of the Arrow, Bill Wadsworreceived the Distinguished Service Award for his tirelestewardship to high-adventure and national program.2008, Bobbie graciously donated the award to the OArchive in her husbands memory.

    The Philmont Staff Association published two boowith additional contributions by Bill Wadsworth, I WannGo Back: Stories of the Philmont Rangers and The Land Times of Jack L. Rhea, the director of camping fro1954-1962. Available at www.philstaff.com

    Innovator of outdoor programs

    mentor to Bill. Welch designed the camp to conservethe wilderness for its intrinsic value while functioningas a source of recreation. In 1940 at Tanager, Bill metBobbie, who also worked at the camp and attendedSyracuse. They married two years later and spenttheir honeymoon camping in the Adirondacks. Bobbiebecame an indispensable partner throughout Bills

    Scouting career.Starting in the late 1940s as a field executive

    for the Onondaga Council based in Syracuse atCamp Woodland near Constantia and later at CampAskenonta on Lake Placid in the Adirondack WildernessArea, Bill Wadsworth organized extended canoeingand backpacking expeditions. By the early 1950s, thetrips included Girl Scouts. The inclusion of girls couldbe considered a forerunner to the eventual Exploringprogram. A consistent Wadsworth trademark persistedin his innovation of programs in the outdoor classroomto help engage youth. He pioneered novel cookingmethods and designed the tab tent that becamepart of the BSA National Supply Divisions camping

    equipment line. He created small Pocket Pak trainingcards covering a wide range of topics designed for quickreference for teaching outdoor skills.

    Bob Cook, who earned Eagle Scout in 1949, fondlyrecalls,

    When Bill worked at the council after army servicein World War Two, he organized a ski school for Scoutsin the city of Syracuse. Bill set up a schedule so heand Bobbie would be at different locations each day ofthe week after school. This emerged as an incredibleexperience for teenage boys. Many went on to racefor their various colleges as I did. Another innovationat camp included water skiing. Boys Life featured anarticle in July 1952, with a picture on the cover of me

    and another boy water skiing on Lake Placid.Bills programs caught the attention of National

    Director of Camping Wes Klusmann (Class of 1950),who was impressed with Wadsworths staff and coedcurriculum. In April 1960, Wadsworth joined the nationalexecutive staff as assistant camping director. Thefollowing spring, he started working with the PhilmontRangers as their national adviser, helping to strengthentraining in outdoor skills, the latest backpackingequipment, hiking safety, and camping techniques. Nota desk-bound professional, Bill consistently innovatedprograms for the outdoor classroom; working in the eldat Philmont served as an outlet for his passion.

    By the early 1960s, Philmonts attendance started to

    grow signicantly. In order to help contingents properlyplan trips, he played an integral role in developingthe booklet Campways, BSA: Tours and Expeditions.Shaping the guide, he contacted state and nationalorganizations that possessed places for a group of boystraveling across the country to stay overnight.DuringBills rst year working with the Philmont Rangersyouth leadership in 1961, they brainstormed lyrics fora department song. Jim Place, who served as a trainingranger that summer, recalled that the tune came froma song back east. In fact, the lyrics closely follow anold camp song from the Adirondacks titled I Want toGo Back to Marcy, the highest peak in New York. ThePhilmont Rangers still use the song, although over the

    years it evolved into more of a chant.

    WaDSWORTH, continued rom page 1

    Bill Buzenberg, the executive director of The Centerfor Public Integrity, worked as a Ranger in 1965-66. Heremembers Wadsworth this way, I deeply admired himand always felt he served a model for me as an adult,though I never told him so. Tall and strong, but one ofthe most patient, kindest, and funniest Scout leadersI ever knew. I thoroughly enjoyed any interaction withhim, from singing to hiking, to cooking. He upheldprofessionalism.

    By January 1971, Wadsworth started serving as thenational director of high adventure programs, a positionhe held until his retirement. Former Philmont Director ofProgram Dave Bates shared, Bill was a champion of

    high adventure. If we needed support from the nationalofce at any of the bases, he carried the torch. Hegarnered approval for the former Maine National HighAdventure Base, the former Land Between the LakesHigh Adventure Base in Kentucky, the Northern TierHigh Adventure Base (previously the Region SevenCanoe Base), and the Florida Sea Base. I possessgreat respect and admiration for Bill Wadsworth. Heremains as a great credit to the Boy Scouts of Americaand to Philmont.

    Instead of relocating to Texas when the nationalofce moved, Wadsworth opted to retire in 1978. Notone to slow down, he channeled his energy to anotherlife-long passion, bow-hunting education. In 1969, he

    wrote the course for the New York State Field Archersand Bowhunters Association, but now retired he took theopportunity to take the program nationwide. One yearafter retiring from professional Scouting, he foundedthe National Bow Hunter Education Foundation. Todaythe Foundation offers courses in all 50 states and 14countries. Each year approximately 5,000 volunteerinstructors certify 60,000 students.

    Bob Cook recalled, My last contact with Bill was theJuly fourth weekend in 1990. I planned to relocate to theScout council in Portland, Oregon, as the comptrollerbut found time to stay with Bill and Bobbie for a fewdays. He recounted many of our adventures to hisneighbors that he invited to meet one of his protgs.Never shy of exaggeration, he could tell a story. The

    1962 Philmont Training Rangers. Front row, left to right: Ron Baird, Assistant Chief Ranger HarveyFarmer, Chief Ranger Clarence Dunn, Charlie Dunlap. Back row: Bob Montoya, Brook Kraeger, Bob

    Washington, Bill Wadsworth, Doug Trevett, Jim Place, Ed Shea.

    Bobbie and Bill Wadsworth in 1949, Courtesy the William Hillcourt Scout Museum and CarsoBuck Memorial Library.

  • 7/28/2019 13 Spring Dsa Newsletter Final

    8/8

    ORdER Of thE ARROwbOY ScOutS Of AMERicA1325 W. Walnut Hill LaneP.O. Box 152079Irving, Texas 75015-2079

    The 1983 National Order of the Arrow Conference

    1983 NOAC DSA presentations, courtesy of Brian Naylor (Class of 1988)

    1983 NOAC Indian dancer, courtesy of Brian

    Naylor (Class of 1988)

    1983 Treasure Island Encampment re-creation of the original ceremony during NOAC, courtesy of

    Brian Naylor (Class of 1988)

    c.d. cAShBartlett, TennesseeSilver Beaver, Silver Antelope

    Former National OA Committee memberClass of 1988March 4, 2013

    dSA REciPiEntSwhO hAvE GOnE tOMEEt thEiR MAkER