Plan to attend the seminar on Thursdays, January 8, 15, 22, and 29, 2009, from 7 – 9:15 p.m. at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, 110 – 50^th SW, Everett WA.

The field trip will be on Saturday & Sunday, February 7 – 8, 2009 at Stevens Pass.

Check out the website – www.wintercamping.org

For further information contact Neal Oshiro 425-672-4592 (evenings) or email NOshiro@wsctc.com.

Winter Camp

Our popular winter camps are virtually full, but there’s still lots of room in the March 27-29 Boy Scout session and in the March 20-22 Webelos session.  For more information, contact the Camping Department at 206-725-0361 or Campingdept@seattlebsa.org.

Mom & Me

Registration is now open for the popular Mom & Me weekend sessions at Camp Sheppard! Beat the rush and start planning now for a great experience ideally suited for first-time campers and their moms.  For more information and a brochure, go to our website, seattlebsa.org or call 206-725-0361.

Travel Alert!
For those traveling to Camp Sheppard for Winter Camp this season, it is important for you to know that the Green River bridge is closed for repairs for the next several months. To help you plan your route, a link to the DOT detour map is located on our website, www.seattlebsa.org on the Camp Sheppard page.

Boy Scout Summer Camp
As many of you may already know, Camp Parsons has filled. For those troops who are interested in attending Boy Scout summer camp but haven’t yet decided where, we invite you to consider Camp Pigott.

What makes Camp Pigott so great? Quality facilities, staff, and program. Since our grand opening in 2003, we have upgraded and expanded our facilities. This includes:

• A just-completed youth shower house featuring individual shower rooms.
• New Outdoor Skills and First Year Camper programs.
• The addition of seven 16’ X 30’ Adirondacks featuring covered patio and raised sleeping area. Two more are planned.
• The COPE high ropes course and 50’ climbing tower that have been used to train directors and challenge youth from around the Western region.
• Expanded 16 station rifle range featuring new Kimber competition-grade .22 rifles.
• A new knife and hawk range and the purchase of new Remington 870 shotguns for the shotgun and black powder ranges.

For the third time since its opening, Camp Pigott has been chosen to host the Western Region National Camp School where management and program directors from around the west come for training and certification.

Great facilities aside, it is our program and staff that make Camp Pigott. We are very excited to announce that Tom Lynch is our new program director. Tom served several years as a youth on the staff at Camp Freeman and as an adult camp commissioner and COPE Director. With Tom’s background, maturity and skills, summer 2009 promises to be one of our best ever!

Scouts who join us this summer can count on one of the best camp experiences they’ve ever had. The Camp Pigott staff is committed to providing activities that will create lifetime memories. We invite your unit to attend Camp Pigott and become part of the unmatched legacy Scouting offers young men. For further information, contact the Camping Department at 206-725-0361. See you at camp!

Camp Sheppard High Adventure Base

Choose from our six classic treks:

Discovery Treks – Rewarding 50-90 mile hikes with up close views of Mt. Rainier over the Northern Loop or Wonderland Trail; pristine fishing lakes and stunning vistas along the Pacific Crest Trail in the Goat Rocks, Norse Peak or Alpine Lakes Wilderness Area; custom routes available.

Ranger Challenge – A true test of outdoor skills, the tough Ranger Challenge Adventure Race is a daunting 91-mile hike, bike and navigate coarse.

For complete details click here or call Camp Sheppard at   360-663-2223                                

Camp Staff Opportunities
If you’d like to experience the energy and excitement of camp working as camp staff, we'd like to hear from you! For further information, visit our website, www.seattlebsa.org and select Camp Staff Opportunities under the Council Camping tab.

FOS Breakfasts / Luncheon
Seattle Mariners Luncheon
The Seattle Mariners Luncheon will take place Friday, January 23, 2009. We are very excited to report that the Seattle Mariners program will include Edgar Martinez and the new General Manager Jack Zduriencik. Additional players are expected to be part of the program. Rick Rizzs will emcee the event.

David Wing, Eagle Scout and long-time supporter of the Mariners event, will be chairing the luncheon. David is District Sales Manager for Expeditors International. David's father was a Scoutmaster for 12 years in SeaTac where David earned his Eagle.

Brad Tilden of Alaska Airlines, will be securing sponsorships along with Kermit Stricklin and his team from Kenworth Truck Company.

Besides Brad and Kermit, 2009 Luncheon Committee members include Matt Barton, Jeff Bell, Joe Chard, John Creighton, Pat Green, Brian Herron and Bob Zook.

Seattle Seahawks Eastside Breakfast
The Seattle Seahawks Eastside Breakfast will take place Wednesday, March 25, 2009 at the Meydenbauer Center in Bellevue.

Phil Bussey, Sr. Vice President-Corporate Affairs/Puget Sound Energy, will be chairing the event. Phil is the current Bellevue Stake President and former president of Washington Roundtable, a statewide public policy research and advocacy group. His knowledge of the community will be extremely beneficial in leading the breakfast towards success.

Two vice chairs have been recruited to date including Randy Utz of Skanska Construction and Jeff Laurence of Symetra. Randy and Jeff are both Eagle Scouts. Jeff earned his Eagle locally while Randy, along with his 3 Eagle Scout brothers, earned his Eagle badge in Upstate New York.

If you would like to host a table or sponsor the event, please call Jon Harthun at 206-902-2321.

For a complete list of all development department events click here.

WashJam 2009
Save the dates: Aug 20-23, '09 for the Scouting Event of the Year.
Co-sponsored by the Chief Seattle Council and Pacific Harbors Council, WashJam will attract youth and leaders from all over the Puget Sound region and features entertaining activities and unforgettable shows for Boy Scouts, Cub Scouts, and Venturers.

Scouts and Leaders will set up camp on the grounds of Fort Lewis and cooking will be done by patrols in traditional jamboree style. Nearly 4,000 attended the first event of this kind in 2004 and we anticipate even more participants this time around. The WashJam 2009 theme, "Celebrate the Adventure," coincides with the theme of the BSA centennial, and this event will kick off more than a year of special events celebrating this historical milestone.

Here's a sampling of the program planned for WashJam 2009:

Cub Scouts: Huge Cub World with all sorts of activities, plus outdoor adventures, archery, BB guns

Shows: Friday night entertainment show and Saturday night Scouting centennial and fireworks

Advance registration is now available. By registering early, you get:

• Campsite selection options
• Preferred seating at shows
• Special edition WashJam participant patch
• And more!

A Message From Council Commissioner Kevin Baker
Happy New Year! With any new year it’s natural to want to reflect on the last year and set our sights on the new. I want to extend a special thank you to all of you for taking the time needed to re-charter your units and to review your Centennial Quality Unit goals for 2008 and set your goals for 2009. Our recent weather certainly created many challenges. If you’re still playing a bit of catch up with your re-charter tasks, please keep at it. Work with your commissioners and District Executives to wrap things up for 2008.

More on the Commissioner Convention, March 21, 2009.  I’m still not certain of the location but will announce a location as soon as confirmed. In the meantime make sure the date is on your calendar. As I announced last month this convention will be a one day training event for ALL commissioners and will include training for Cub Scout, Boy Scout & Venturing Roundtable Commissioners and RT Commissioner Staff. There will be specific sessions for District Commissioners and Assistant District Commissioners and of course Unit Commissioners. You may have seen in the most recent edition of Scouting Magazine that the National Council supports a new recognition knot for commissioner service. The knot makes reference to a “PhD in Commissioner Science. I want you to know that this knot will be attainable in our council but it will have a different name since we don’t offer a “college”. The purpose of the knot is to recognize those commissioners who work very hard to improve the quality of commissioner service.  So stay tuned…more to come.    

I am very happy to announce two new Assistant Council Commissioners. Bob Newbill is our new ACC for Commissioner Training.  Glenn Schmitt will be ACC for Boy Scout Roundtables. So they join the commissioner team along with Cheri Pepka, ACC for Cub Scout Roundtables and Dave Carlson, ACC, LDS Relationships.  With Glenn on board there will be a Boy Scout Roundtable breakout at the Council Coordinated meetings along with the Cub Scout Roundtable breakout that the Cub Scout RT commissioners and staff have enjoyed. Remember…Every Scout & youth member in the BSA deserves trained leaders. Unit leaders and everyone attending a monthly Roundtable deserves trained commissioners!     

 Set your 2009 Training goals now.

2010 National Jamboree
Celebrating the Adventure - Continuing the Journey

July 19, 2010 through August 3, 2010

2009 Wood Badge Training
Scout Training for Real Life

Spring Course: April 16-18 and May 7-9 (Thursday-Saturday)
Course Director: John Hansen, 425.836.4828 or john_j_hansen@msn.com

Fall Course: September 11-13 and 25-27 (Friday-Sunday)
Course Director: Bruce Anderson, 206.842.8416 or brucea@cutler-anderson.com

Wood Badge is a leadership course designed for all adult Scouters who have finished their basic level of training. Participants take part in presentations, discussion, and activities that explore a wide range of leadership philosophies and tools, as well as personal and team development. Participants learn to apply appropriate leadership strategies to enable them to reach their highest level of performance.

For further information contact the course director or visit the council web site here.

A Simple Discussion of Charitable Remainder Trusts

Chances are, if you’ve had a relationship with a charitable or educational institution, you’ve probably heard about charitable remainder trusts. You’ve also probably heard about the benefits they can create for you, your family, and your favorite charity.

You might also think that these trusts are only for the wealthiest donors. But a recent survey of donors nationwide shows that is not the case. In fact, among donors who had set up a charitable remainder trust:

·   33% of these donors have an annual income of $50,000 or less

·   42% of the trusts had less than $100,000 in them

·   More trusts were funded with stock than with cash

For the majority of charitable trusts, either the donor or a family member served as trustee.

Who is involved in a charitable remainder trust?

The donor: The donor is the person who creates the trust, transfers property to the trust, and names the beneficiaries.

The trustee: A charitable remainder trust must have a trustee. The trustee is responsible for the management and investment of the trust assets, the making of distributions, and the preparation of income tax returns and other required filing. Potential trustees include the donor or a professional trustee, such as a bank or trust company. There can be more than one trustee.

The income beneficiary: Charitable remainder trusts pay income at least annually to income beneficiaries. The donor may name himself as the sole income beneficiary or may include others, such as a spouse or child. Concurrent or consecutive interests may be created. For example, the income interest could be paid in equal shares to the donor’s children, or it could be paid first to the donor during his lifetime then to the donor’s spouse during her lifetime. In fact, 70% of all charitable trusts are payable for either one or two lifetimes.

The remainder beneficiary: When the income beneficiary’s interest ends, the trustee gives what is left in the trust to the remainder beneficiary. The donor can name more than one remainder beneficiary, but each remainder beneficiary must be a tax-qualified charity, such as the Chief Seattle Council/Boy Scouts of America. The donor may have the right to change the remainder beneficiary during her life or in her will.

What can be given?

While a charitable remainder trust can accept almost any kind of property, the simplest kinds to use are appreciated real estate or marketable securities. Because the trust must make periodic payments to the income beneficiary, property transferred into the trust should be income-producing or easily sold.

If you have additional questions about a C.R.T., contact the Chief Seattle Council at 206-902-2321.

Congratulations
New Eagle Scouts!



Click here to view list

Click here to print a convenient pledge card for your wallet.

Here are a few tips to assist with this year's rechartering process:
WAS DUE DECEMBER 31st, 2008

1. Be sure to use the Internet Recharter code for recharter, not the advancement code
2. Log in the first time as a first time user
3. Make sure you are using a PC with Internet Explorer
4. Include the pro-rated fee for each new youth listed on the charter
5. Provide applications for all new adults & youth listed on the page 1 report
6. Charter must be signed by the Executive Officer, the unit leader (Cubmaster, Scoutmaster, Varsity team Coach, Venture Advisor or Skipperr).

The annual meeting of the Chief Seattle Council will be held on Tuesday, March 10, 2009 at 7:00 p.m. at Towne Hall Seattle. At this time elections will be conducted for members of the council executive board, advisory board, and officers of the corporation. Active members of the council may make recommendations of possible nominees for the consideration of the council nominating committee. Recommendations to the committee shall be made in writing at least 30 days prior to the annual meeting date, and should be submitted to Sheila Whitehead at the council service center or swhitehead@seattlebsa.org.

Eagle Scout gives his dad the best Christmas present... life.

Soccer and Scouting youth enjoyed a tournament on December 14, 2008

Scouting Celebrates 100 Years!

National BSA is rolling out new ways for you to participate in the 100th anniversary of Scouting

Nominations to begin on February 8th, 2009 for the BSA 100th Anniversary National Hall of Leadership.

The 100th Anniversary National Hall of Leadership is an opportunity for anyone to recognize outstanding leadership by a Scout, registered Scout leader, or Scouting volunteer who made a significant difference in the life of another by the extraordinary service they have given … and the Scouting virtues they have modeled. Click here for details.

US Mint to Produce BSA Silver Dollars

President Bush recently signed into law the Boy Scouts of America Centennial Commemorative Coin Act (H.R. 5872) which authorizes the minting of 350,000 silver dollar coins in recognition of BSA’s 100th Anniversary in 2010. Only two commemorative coins are selected for U.S. Mint production each year, and minting of the coins for 2010 will occur between February 8, 2010 and January 1, 2011.  For each coin sold, there is a $10 surcharge representing a $3,500,000 donation that will be made available to local councils in the form of grants for the extension of Scouting in hard to serve areas.

Through the BSA Alumni Connection program, Scouting alumni are invited to come back, make a new connection, and take an active role in Scouting again. That group includes not just former Scouts, but also their family members, volunteers, professional Scouters, community leaders, and the tens of millions of Americans who have benefited from Scouting.