For those of you who didn't this summer the Summit aka the PERMANENT HOME of the JAMBOREE held its FIRST official event there. The purpose was to TEST & FIGURE OUT what is going to be NECESSARY to ensure that the 2013 National Scout Jamboree is ABOVE & BEYOND all EXPECTATIONS that our SCOUTS & SCOUTERS will get to see NEXT year! If you went to the Jamboree Shakedown this Summer I'm here to TELL YOU that if you thought this was AWESOME! Just wait until next year where things will be EVEN BIGGER & MORE EXTREME than what YOU EXPERIENCED this Summer.
This message is from the head of the Extreme Sports Team for the 2013 National Scout Jamboree and it gives just a tiny glimpse into what the new JAMBOREE MODEL EXPERIENCE is going to be like for those SCOUTS & SCOUTERS who have the PRIVILEGE & HONOR of going!
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Exceptional! honorable! & impressive! I have new found enthusiasm, respect & admiration for each of you. That shakedown was a massive human feat of selfless commitment, fully deserving of the title Servant Leadership. Thank you would never be enough. Russell's priceless gift of the #13 script is a cherished treasure. Please take care of that coin, from one volunteer to another, & protect it. Each of you humbled me in what you gave, what you spent, & in what you endured to deliver the first day of program ever, at the Summit. Ladies & gentlemen, those who serve on the first day of the life of a Navy ship are called, Plank-owners. YOU are the Summit Plank-owners, & I'm so very proud to have served with you.
There is no way for me to cite every act of heroism, with cognizant acknowledgement of the many acts of valor that I am not mentioning (Will, Dick, Dan, Mike, John, Tom, Scotland Dave & Susan, & many more), please accept my humble thank you, the expressed gratitude of many senior managers, & the unspoken joy of the young boys & girls of the BSA, today & in the many years that follow, for what you have created, in the hills of West Virginia.
Allow me to admire a few heroes, including:
Bike Patrol: Those who survived & put miles on those hills, so that our youth would not only ride but learn - wow, iron men, tops on my list. & thanks to Liz, from Gravity Logic, for the mud on her face & grit she inspired in each of our coaches.
High Gear: OMG! If you didn't climb, then you don't know. The heroes of High Gear pulled from human determination to overcome the greatest odds. Thank you could never be enough, but simply my promise to make work transport of High Gear staff my number one fight for all those who follow you; hopefully bringing you pride that your sacrifice will never be in vain, & will serve generations that follow. Kirk Aland, & I, need you, the physically fit mountain men & women, back in 2013. Bring some friends & if I can do anything to help any of you, please do not hesitate to ask. Thank you!
BMX: Oh heck yes! An event 100% dirt, shutdown by the rain. BMX never gave up, tops in creativity & determination. BMX went from hopeless, to all tracks open, to the number one WOW of shakedown, the 8 lane BMX Big Track. Stunning performance by this team & my personal thank you for stand out performances by Ginger Smietana, Fritz Knerr, Gil Canady, Alex Dean, & a couple quiet work horses that truly caught our attention. Thank You!
Low Gear: Thank you Chuck Ferguson for finding John Mason & Rich Hager who lead the transformation of the single most difficult situation from disaster to brilliant success. Hundreds of bikes on a cramped roadside, water nightmares, cleaning impossibilities, medical micro focus, communication casualties, staffing dynamics, & the improvisational skills of a 100 Eagle scouts - trust me, what you delivered as a team, was absolutely impressive!
Skate: The only event where everything seemed to go right from day one. With nothing assembled, tracks incomplete, no shade, barren surfaces, Virgin staff, rain, & no intuitive roadmap of how to assemble the pieces into an event, Skate opened with a bang "literally", & ended up with gasps from our scouts about being able to come to scout camp & skate. Skate was the media darlings with the most aggressive response to keeping the media happy. Skate was the dis-Abilities superstar with Tim Birt dropping in on the half pipe for a video shoot & advocacy for all that Extreme Sports is doing to adapt & deliver as the most flexible disabilities response at the Summit. Thanks to many, & notably for the work of Teeya Mills & Scott Weaver who smiled & sold skate, with alacrity.
Megastars: Rob Coquet, & Aaron Spohn, leaders with passion, inspiration, & the stand out difference makers between good & FANTASTIC! Honestly, if I were to never work another day in the service of a non-profit organization, I will forever be changed by looking into the eyes of these two men, convicted to deliver perfection in what they do. Wow! High Gear would not have opened, & Low Gear traffic flow on that cramped road side would not have worked, without Rob single handedly, magically producing two new trails within an hour each. BMX Big Track was the Wow of Extreme & it sat silent on 13 July & hopeless on 14 July. With Aaron pulled between supporting a media event for the West Virginia Governor, Skate, & moving the earth, literally, to open the big track, including serving as hydraulic engineer, Aaron & team delivered BMX OZ! like the man behind the curtain. Thank you! gentlemen.
It's Personal. Thank You Tina Tharratt! You are the rock of Extreme Sports. When I heard the crackle of your voice, & Rich Hager's over the radio, I knew that our team of over 150 people would win the day. Hope! calm! confidence! Leadership worthy of any Wood Badge 4-beader! Working beyond exhaustion, "fixing" the errors of others; counselor to the weary, the best partner in crime anyone could dream of. Thank you!
Heroes: For each of you, who came to the Summit & stood in the rain with us, with a smile on your face, & determination in your heart; please know that I for one, saw that passion in your eyes, & pledge my honor to rise up tomorrow & serve you. Thank you!
& now it is time to learn from our shakedown, clean our kit, harden our bodies, & set out into our Councils & Communities to recruit 5 new staff members each to join the Extreme Team for 2013. Each of you are now the great messenger Uncas who will be the difference for the first National Jamboree at the Summit, measured by the quality of warriors you bring to this great cause.
Michael J. Hardebeck
Extreme Sports
National Scout Jamboree 2013
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Of course this next part for those of you who have been in Scouting for any fair amount of time shouldn't be that shocking & it is................
ATTENTION ALL SCOUTS & SCOUTERS in order to GET BIG & GO WILD this NATIONAL SCOUT JAMBOREE desperately need YOU to STEP UP & get to EXPERIENCE something that become the MEMORY of a LIFETIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yours in Scouting Service
Mark West
Assistant Scoutmaster
Camp Gorsuch 2012 Super-Troop Coordinatore
T1316- Eklutna District; T669- Tustumena District;
Program Committee; Training Committee; Camping Committee;
NSJ2005 Participant- Youth QM; NSJ2010 Subcamp 7 Staff
NSJ2013 Extreme Sports Staff; WSJ2007 Youth QM; WSJ2011 IST;
Eagle Scout; OA Nanuk Lodge; Philmont AA2008; 2010 NYLT Staff;
If you are paid to do Scouting you are called a professional! If you are not paid to do Scouting, you are called a Volunteer! If you pay to do Scouting, you are called a Scouter!
