My Vision

 

Your daily life has undoubtedly been affected over the past few weeks and I appreciate the disruption our current public health crisis is causing you and your families. And yet, I’m hopeful that you will join me in looking forward to the time when we can confidently resume the traditions and fellowship that give our community strength.

As a native New Englander, I share your sense of loss as our familiar rites of spring might not include a festive Patriots' Day nor the return of No. 12 down in Foxborough for training camp. But this year, at a time when sports, schools, and even faith leaders have been challenged by social distancing, Scouting is once again staking its claim as the original social network. 

Right now, youth and families across Vermont may be facing anxiety, uncertainty, and loneliness... yet, you continue to make a difference. The world is realizing that Scouting is uniquely designed to inoculate young people from childhood trauma and it’s doing so even now by kindling community through weekly Zoom meetings, hitting timely topics head-on through online Merit Badge classes, fostering global connections through April’s Jamboree on the Internet, and channeling service-minded families to perform good turns and support Frontliners.

When this situation finally passes, the Scouting program and the experiential learning, leadership, and outdoor opportunities it provides will be needed like never before. 
The stakes have never been higher, nor has the timing been better, for Scouting to prepare all young people to make ethical and moral choices while instilling in them both the skills and resilience the future will assuredly require. The successes I have been fortunate to share in, as measured by the Journey to Excellence and other metrics, have all been merely lagging indicators when compared to the groups of talented people whom I have helped excite around this shared vision.

I have always enjoyed the opportunity to connect with and rally new stakeholders around an ideal that is greater than oneself. Whether counseling a homesick Scout, driving a team of 17 field staff members to a successful $1 million product sale, or being equal parts father, employer and cheerleader to a Boy Scout resident camp staff of 70, I have enjoyed serving and inspiring teams.

Inspiring, training and retaining the very best qualified workforce will help us achieve our goals as a council. Our volunteers merit this promise in the same way that every youth deserves a trained leader. When driven by the simple truth – that every young person deserves a high-quality Scouting program – I see incredible opportunity in harnessing the creative potential of a generation now entering the workforce, which seeks its chance to make a mark. 

That high-quality program sounds like what’s on tap this summer at Camp Sunrise and Mount Norris. It is a program that seeks to instill the fundamentals required by life’s challenges great and small, while encouraging creativity, innovation and individuality. I look forward to spreading our passion throughout the Green Mountain State alongside our incredible volunteers.

As a Scout, I was taught that the greatest acts are done in service to others. I remain hopeful to be of service to you and to help coauthor a new chapter of innovation and growth in the council, making Scouting’s promise relevant to Vermonters.

On behalf of my wife, Bethany, who is my strength, and my daughters, Riley and Abigail, who remain my constant reminders to grow membership, thank you for your thoughtfulness in considering us.

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Yours in Scouting,